Hella-Buggin'

So, I live in a pretty affluent neighborhood. With that comes a constant stream of day labor, deliveries, maintenance crews ect. flooding into sleepy secluded neighborhoods. My house for example isn't visible from the road at all. There's always the occasional unlocked bike stolen from a yard here and there but in the last few weeks things have escalated. Within walking distance, a home was looted in broad daylight, a car stolen from a driveway, and a bunch of tools from an open garage while people where home.

I always lock and set the alarm and have a GPS tracking signal in the car but I'm just wondering if that's enough. Obviously if someone knows what they're doing and wants the car bad enough they'll get it but I was just wondering what if anything in addition can be done.

Condor

Pay your insurance premium and spend time worrying about other things.

No HTwo O

Keep the keys (and spare keys) in a safe location within your home. In the unlikely event someone breaks into your house, they can't just easily take your car keys and drive off in your Porsche.

Do you have a pet (dog) or the "appearance" of a pet?

Hella-Buggin'

Good suggestion about the keys. I have the spare hidden but the main key just gets tossed in the drawer. No dog. Put her down after 17 years of service. Although she looked tough she would hop in the front seat with anyone. Including the dog catcher a few times.

No HTwo O

^sorry about your pet. You could always create the apprearance of a dog, with a large pet bowl outside and a "beware of dog" sign on your property.

Good lighting is key too. Motion sensing too.

I assume you have small signs on your property stating your alarm company's name & such?

Fin Fever

lots of redneck signs with gun humor on the gates etc , also stickers to let them know you are an NRA lifetime member

PJorgen

My favorite is:

"If you are found here tonight, you will be found here tomorrow."

No HTwo O

Two words:

Trunk
Monkey

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...4901133929840#

Edgy01

Follow good security procedures. Lock everything, and do not have a predictable pattern of behavior. The bad guys count on exploiting the easy stuff first. Simply keeping your garage door closed is a good start. Being in an area where your home is not readily visible to the public is not great, but there is little that you can do about that right now. Get an electronic dog. (They 'bark' at your door when someone approaches).

Change your pattern. Often. Think like a bad guy.

nyca

Move out of California, the lunatics have taken over the asylum there. And before you retort - New York is right there too, so I'll be following the same advice I am giving you myself someday soon.

Once it starts trending as you describe, there is no turning it around. Here on long island, we have the "can people" - people who cruise the streets with shopping carts taking cans out of recycling bins to collect the deposits. Its an organized effort - station wagons or SUVs park in a central location in the neighboorhood, the collectors roam with wagons, and return the "booty" to the cars which I imagine then drive to the supermarket. The police do nothing. Now you may say - so what, its just garbage anyway. But the same teams now take anything you happen to leave outside your house as well - I've lost bikes, a set of tires once, etc. After all, it was left outside my house, so it must be "garbage", right? I now have two locked sheds. Short of putting up fencing and locked gates around the property, there is nothing I can do. I keep my automatic garage door opener powered off during the work week to prevent a code scanner person from opening it.

tincanman99

They are cutting the budgets for everything everywhere including police. As more and more people fall out of the safety net its going to get nastier and nastier.

This is just the warm up of things to come.

GHills

You have to plan ahead for good theft deterrence.

It starts with your configuration. Here are some keys:

Soft ruffled leather
Gray interior
Lobster forks
Red seat belts and gauges
Extreme measure: Configure a panamera

BostonDuce

Fake or real outdoor security camera; pull fuse from fuel pump or install proper hidden cut out switch for the same; install alarm horn in the interior of the car; install fake alarm LED where it can be easily seen; install "gas station bell" near beginning of drive way; place keys inside a "safe room" -interior room with IR or contacts on door-like a bath room-where you wouldn't normally look for keys.

Make you and your stuff look like and be a PIA to boost-they'll look elsewhere.

BD

Macster

Don't leave anything that even remotely looks valuable visible in the car.

Always lock the car even if you are just going to be gone a 'second' and keep the car key with you always. However, I can't tell you how many times I've been chased down by a poor Porsche service manager after locking my car on the service forecourt and walking towards the rental car desk or shuttle pickup.

Park in well-lighted areas and always be aware of your surroundings. Watch yourself too at stoplights for anyone approaching the car or quickly jumping out of a car next to or near your's.

If you're ever the victim of a carjacking of course give the car up and let the police handle the theft.

I don't think it will come to this but the advice is if someone tries to take you at gunpoint to run away. Chances are very high if the gunman shoots he'll miss you. Most people are lousy shots with a handgun even at close range. While there is a risk the further away you get the better off you are.

OTOH, ff you get driven away at gunpoint your chances of surviving drop.

And lastly I avoid bad places. There are areas in the bay area I just don't go into for love or money. I don't even drive through these areas on the way to/from good places, save by freeway.

Sincerely,

Macster.

RED HORSE

Long ago my wife and I lived for a year in Peshawar Pakistan. The only solution there to keeping your belongings was to have a full time guard. I suspect in some parts of the U.S. we are heading for the same sort of situation. Sad.