❄️🚗 Cold Weather Warning – Don’t Leave Your Car Unattended While Defrosting

With colder mornings approaching, we want to remind residents that leaving your car unattended with the engine running – even on your own drive – puts it at high risk of being stolen. 🚨

Opportunistic thieves often look for vehicles left running to defrost, and it only takes a few seconds for someone to jump in and drive off.

To keep your vehicle safe:
• 👀 Stay with your car while it’s warming up or de-icing.
• ❄️ Use de-icer spray or an ice scraper instead of relying on the engine.
• 🔑 Never leave keys in the ignition or the engine running while you’re inside your home.
• 🧼 Make sure all windows are fully clear before driving.

 

Burglary / Car Thefts are particularly invasive crimes that can have a lasting impact on victims. If you have been a victim and need support and help, you should have been offered the services of Victim Support. You may have declined at the time, or not noticed the offer, but can refer yourself at any time by either calling 0808 168 9111 or visiting their website www.victimsupport.org.uk and quote the crime number provided to you.

Burglars do not want to get caught, so taking action to make your home or business premises safe and less attractive to thieves can go a long way to reducing the risk.

Not all advice, or security products recommended are the same, or necessarily fit for purpose. 

If looking to take positive action to prevent yourself from being a victim of this type of crime, help and advice can be found on the Neighbourhood Watch website.

We hope the information above is useful and addresses to some degree the concerns that you have raised. If you have experienced this issue or have information regarding an incident, please report it using our online reporting tools at https://www.leics.police.uk, speak to an operator in our Force Communications Room via our online web chat or call the non-emergency number 101.

Alternatively, you can stay completely anonymous by contacting Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or via their online form at crimestoppers-uk.org.

We will continue to provide you with updates regarding this and any other issues you raise in the local priority survey. The feedback you provide influences the priorities we focus on and enables updates you receive to be more relevant. Please look out for our periodic survey reminders to update your issues and priorities, it really helps.

Many thanks,

Your Local Beat Team