Modern vehicles 'harder to steal than older cars'

Date: 15/8/2011

Old cars may be easier to steal than modern vehicles but no matter what the age of an automobile is, owners should take care they do everything they can to secure it.

Michael Fraser, a former burglar and now a Security Expert working with Confused.com, says that cars today are designed to make it more difficult for thieves to steal them.

He adds: "Most modern cars have a memory chip in the key, which makes taking a car harder because they can't hotwire it as they did in the past. But instead of making it harder for the thief, people often leave their car keys in the hallway, on the stairs, in handbags left downstairs or in the kitchen."

As a result, a burglar may go "letterbox fishing" or try and enter the home through a back door in order to get the keys - which could mean it is worthwhile always taking the time to hide them out of sight.

The best way to keep a car safe, according to Mr Fraser, is to put a tracker on it, make use of a wheel-locking nut, fix a sticker in the window saying the vehicle is alarmed and put anything valuable out of sight.

In addition, he recommends keeping the inside of the automobile tidy so it does not look as though it has been left in a rush.

As the weather grows colder again heading into autumn, drivers may wish to take particular care of their car's security, as Tracker claimed that last winter the cold weather and dark evenings appeared to lead to a "spate" of car-jacking.

Posted by Sarah Bailey