Thwarting Car Theft

My insurance agent sends out an email once a month. This month's edition alerted me to a car theft angle of which I had not been privy. This public service announcement is brought to you by Rumpus. No animals were injured or killed in its preparation.

A new way to steal your car

It seems car thieves have found yet another way to steal your car or truck without any effort at all. They peer through your windshield, write down the Vehicle Identification Number from the label on the dash, go to the local car dealership and request a duplicate key based on the VIN.

Unfortunately, many car dealers' parts departments will make duplicate keys from the VIN number without confirming ownership of the vehicle. The thief doesn't have to break in, do any damage, or draw attention to himself. All he has to do is walk up to your car, insert the key and drive away to a local chop shop. You don't believe it? It IS that easy.

The Sacramento Sheriff's Department says the best way to prevent this from happening is to put some electrical tape, duct tape, medical tape, or even a 3 X 5 card, across the VIN label on the dashboard. By law, you cannot remove the VIN, but you can cover it so a car thief can't view it through the windshield.

If you leave your car parked anywhere for an extended period, cover the VIN and protect yourself from being the next victim of this easy-to-use scam.