New Year’s Day, January 1, is the day when the most cars are stolen in the United States. This means that a lot of people are going to be making police reports and insurance claims on New Year’s Day. Fortunately, there are some simple, common sense, things that you can do to avoid having your vehicle stolen today.
According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, or NCIB, there were 2,760 vehicle thefts on January 1, 2009. More vehicle thefts took place on that day than on any other holiday in 2009. Halloween of 2009 had 2,325 vehicle thefts, which means it takes second place on the list. Christmas of 2009 had the lowest number of reported vehicle thefts of all the holidays, with a total of 1,336. I assume that the spirit of the holiday season made the people who are inclined to steal cars to wait until Christmas was over before they got back to their nefarious deeds.
Naturally, if someone steals or damages your vehicle, you should contact the police. Sometimes, a thief isn’t after your whole car. Instead, they want something that is inside your car, or that is an important, and expensive, part of your car. In this case, you will definitely want to contact the insurance company that covers your vehicle, and make a claim.
There are some simple things that you can do to avoid having to start the brand new year of 2011 by making an insurance claim. In general, you want to do things that will make it more difficult for a thief to break into your vehicle. Make sure you lock your car, (even if you are planning on running back into your house to get something and will “just be a second”). If you leave shopping bags in your car, put them out of sight, (like in the trunk). Leaving them in plain sight can tempt a thief to break in and grab the bags. Park your car in a well lit area. The more lights, the bigger the chance that a thief will be caught as he or she tries to steal your car. These tips can help you to avoid having to file an insurance claim on New Year’s Day, or on any other day in 2011.
Image by Rick Audet on Flickr