Parking Safety Tips

• Always park in lighted areas.
• Always lock your vehicle.
• Avoid going go alone whenever possible.
• Carry small loads at a time, keeping arms free for movement.
• Have your keys ready to use.
• Observe your vehicle as you approach it. Look around the vehicle and at the front and back seats before unlocking the door.
• Lock your doors as soon as you are safely in your vehicle.
• Never hitchhike, and never pick up a hitchhiker.
• Keep your vehicle in good repair.
• Never let your gas gauge get below one quarter of a tank.
• Be aware of your surroundings and walk with confidence. When a criminal picks out a victim, in most cases they look for three things:
  1. a person who appears to be weak/vulnerable
  2. a person who is unaware of (or not paying attention to) surroundings
  3. and opportunity.

• Lock all your vehicle's doors even if you plan to be gone for only a brief time.
• Never leave your keys in your vehicle.
• Always roll up windows and close sunroofs in parked and locked vehicles.
• Remove potential theft items out of sight in a parked and locked vehicle.
  • You may know that a bag in your vehicle contains nothing of value, but a thief will not until they burglarize your vehicle.
• If you must leave valuable items in your car while away, place items out of sight before reaching your destination or move them inconspicuously. Someone may be watching when you put items under a seat or throw something over them.
  • An opportunistic thief is on the lookout for trunk-packing and can break into your car the minute you're out of sight.

Commonly stolen items include:

• Backpacks, gym bags, laptop bags
• Cash/coins, checkbooks and credit/debit cards
• Wallets and purses (even when hidden under a seat or in an unlocked glove compartment)
• Laptops
• Cell phones and chargers
• Portable GPS navigation systems
• Stereo/CD players and faceplates, amps, speakers
• Jewelry
• Anything of obvious value