Top 10 tips to avoid car crime in The New Forest this Summer

• Safer vehicles campaign from Hampshire Constabulary

In the two months since the introduction of the Safer Vehicles campaign as part of Hampshire Constabulary’s Creating Safer Communities programme, the number of thefts of and from vehicles has shown an encouraging drop.

Between April and June this year, a total of 4,139 offences were reported to the police compared to 5,443 during the same period the previous year – a reduction of 13.8%.

But the Force recognises there is no room for complacency.

As part of the Safer Vehicles campaign, officers across the New Forest will be paying particular attention to beauty spots and caravan sites over the summer months.

However, they stress that members of the public also have a major role to play in keeping their vehicles and personal belongings safe.

Superintendent Matthew Greening, from Hampshire Constabulary’s community safety department, said: “Vehicles are often targeted when parked in more isolated rural areas and those parked at beauty spots can be particularly vulnerable, especially during the summer months.

"Picnickers and walkers often leave their vehicles unattended for long periods of time in isolated locations, making it easier for thieves to strike.

“We will do everything we can to prevent your vehicle falling prey to thieves but as a motorist you also have a very important role to playing tackling car crime.”

To reduce the risk of being a victim of car crime this summer, motorists are urged to take the following simple precautions:

• Make sure the doors of your vehicle are locked and the windows shut, no matter how hot the weather.
  
• If possible, park your vehicle where there are people moving about.
  
• Make sure it is parked in a location where it is in clear view of other members of the public, not obscured from sight and therefore more vulnerable.
  
• If parking at night, try to park your vehicle in a well-lit area.
  
• Check the area before leaving your vehicle. Is there anyone suspicious waiting nearby in a car? If so, wait a little to see what they do, and take a note of their registration number.
  
• Wherever possible, do not leave anything in your vehicle, including in the boot.
  
• Make sure you do not leave a jacket or coat behind when you leave the vehicle. It may to you to be of very little value, but a thief may think it has been left in situ to hide a laptop or handbag and break into your car to find out.
  
• If you have a removable music system, take it with you - don’t forget to take your CDs and tapes as well.
  
• Make sure you do not leave documents in your vehicle which have your address on it - or you could find not only your car but your home targeted by thieves.
  
• When planning a trip to the countryside, make sure you only take what you really need. That way you won’t have to leave anything in your vehicle.

Items most commonly stolen from vehicles include laptop computers, handbags and purses, mobile phones and clothes.

They are easy to remove quickly, are easily concealed, and do not look out-of-place if a thief is seen walking away from a vehicle with them. None of these items should ever be left in a parked vehicle, whether in a rural location or anywhere else.

Police across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight have adopted a partnership approach to tackling the problem – with considerable success.

The New Forest has achieved significant success in targeting beauty spot car crime.

With more than 140 such car parks, local police have in the past taken out injunctions against known vehicle criminals to prevent them from committing offences in the area.

Through Operation Scorpion, a multi-agency approach has been adopted to increase public awareness of the dangers by putting up posters and distributing leaflets.

A number of covert operations have also been staged, with a number of people arrested as a result.

Supt Greening said: “We are doing everything we can to ensure people across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight do not fall victim to car crime this summer, but we do need members of the public to be sensible and make sure their vehicle is not an open invitation to a thief.”