Prevent Car Theft with These Vehicle Security Tips | Apex Garage Door Repair

Prevent Car Theft with These Vehicle Security Tips | Apex Garage Door Repair

You don’t have to have an expensive luxury car to fall prey to car thieves. According to the FBI, hundreds of thousands of motor vehicles are stolen each year—in 2017, there were more than 756,000 nationwide car thefts. Here are some tips for keeping your vehicle, and your home, safe and secure. 

Always Lock Your Car Doors

Always make sure that all your vehicle’s doors are locked, even if you’re only leaving for 15 minutes. Remember that although you might only be gone “for a second”, burglars, too, need only a second to snatch your valuables. If your car does not have a remote automatic locking feature, ask a mechanic if it’s possible to install them.

Hide Your Valuables

Car thieves need to work quickly, which means they need to maximize their time by only targeting cars which will make them a profit. That means that vehicles with visible valuables, like laptops, cell phones, and jewelry, are at high risk for theft or vandalism. If you need to store purchases, gym bags, or other items in your car, stuff them under the seats or lock them securely in the trunk. If you work in construction or a similar industry, remember that tools and specialized pieces of equipment can be valuable, too, and should not be left out on the seats. 

Park in a Secure Area

If you own a home with a garage, parking the car inside it can mitigate theft. If you have too many cars to fit inside the garage, determine whether or not it is possible to build another garage addition on your property. If your garage has been overtaken by workshop tools or other items, consider whether it’s possible to build a new addition to house your tools, organize your garage, or move your operations to a shared workspace in another facility. If you live in a shared apartment or condo building, try to park in a highly-trafficked, well-lit area.

Invest in Garage Door Maintenance

Garage door torsion springs bear massive amounts of weight day in and day out, so it’s easy for them to quietly fall out of repair. Keep your vehicles and other possessions safe by scheduling a garage door inspection at least once a year. Your garage door contractor can make sure that the torsion springs and all other components are safe; that the locking mechanism is effective; and that everything is working as it should.

Never Leave Your Garage Door Opener in the Car 

Last July, we shared an alert from local police warning homeowners against leaving automatic garage door openers inside their cars. Authorities warned that, increasingly, thieves were stealing garage door openers from unlocked cars, then returning to the home at a later date to break into the home. Remember that, even though you are home safe, thieves can still come onto your property and swipe your garage door opener from your car. Make sure to always put your garage door opener on a keychain, in the glove box or some other hidden location.

If you realize that your garage door opener is missing, the first thing you should do is engage the “Vacation Mode” panel available on most modern garage door openers. This will stop the garage door opener from working. Some models also have a “Reset Frequency” option which will also stop the garage door opener from communicating with the door.

Get Garage Door Repair & Maintenance in Apex NC

All American Overhead Garage Door is proud to provide garage door installation, replacement, and repair services to Raleigh, Cary, Apex, and nearby areas. To schedule an appointment, give us a call today.

By |March 24th, 2020|All American Overhead, Broken Garage Keypad, Garage Door Company, Garage Door Repair, Garage Door Safety|Comments Off on Prevent Car Theft with These Vehicle Security Tips | Apex Garage Door Repair

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