by Dean Larson
Having your car stolen can be a scary thing. Often, those who have had their cars taken typically feel angry, vulnerable, and even violated. Here are four tips that can help prevent your car from ever being stolen.
Having your car stolen can be a scary thing. Many who have had their cars taken typically feel both angry and vulnerable, even to the point of feeling somewhat "violated". If you don't have insurance that covers the theft of a car when it happens, it can be equally as scary from a financial point of view. When you have comprehensive coverage on your car, your insurance company will help to replace your stolen car. While having this coverage is important, there are some ways that you can help prevent your car from being stolen as well, which may save you money on your car insurance rates in the long run. As they say, an ounce of prevention is always worth a pound of cure.
Tip 1: Use Common Sense - One of the best ways that you can prevent your car from being stolen is to use common sense and make sure that you lock your car doors whenever you leave your vehicle, regardless if it's in a dark alley, a public place, or parked in your garage. Plain and simple, if you leave your doors unlocked all the time, you elevate the risk of your car being stolen. You should also be sure that you take your keys with you and never leave them in your car or anywhere else in public. Often just using these common sense precautions is enough to save you from car theft.
Tip 2: Get an Alarm - You can also help prevent car theft by installing some kind of warning device or alarm device in your car. Whether it is a visible device or an audible one, both can be good deterrents to anyone thinking about stealing your car. Usually alarms are fairly affordable, and it is definitely cheaper than trying to find a new car.
Tip 3: Use an Immobilizing Device - Another way to prevent your car from being stolen is to purchase some kind of immobilizing device to use in your car. There are a variety of different devices available, such as smart keys, kill switches, the Club, and fuel cut-offs. Many of these devices are relatively inexpensive and they are highly effective as well.
Tip 4: Install a Tracking Device - One of the newer ways to deter car thieves is to have a tracking device installed in your car. These devices are quite high tech, and they will alert you when someone is moving your car without authorization. Some of these tracking devices actually will notify the police when unauthorized movement is made as well. While these tend to be a bit more expensive than other methods, they can definitely be a great help if your car actually gets stolen.
Even though you may have coverage on your car that will pay if it is stolen, taking preventive measures is much simpler and will help keep your car insurance rates down as well. Just taking the time to use common sense and employ the help of cheap devices can help keep your car from being stolen. While incorporating one of these tips is great, using all of them together can give you the best results when trying to protect your car from theft.
