Prevent Leaving Your Child in Car

Prevent Leaving Your Child in Car

It can happen to anyone. A child dies in a vehicle after being locked inside. This tragedy typically occurs when a parent or caregiver makes a change in their routine. The parent that normally drives the child to their activities has a schedule change, causing the other parent to take over the chauffeur responsibility. When someone is not accustomed to handling this responsibility, a lapse in memory can occur. Depending on the weather conditions, a child locked in a vehicle may experience hypothermia or heat stroke.

Child locked in car
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Prevent Your Car from Being Stolen

Don’t Make It Easy For Car Thieves

Want to make your vehicle less attractive to car thieves? The quicker a car thief can steal your vehicle, the more attractive it is. Anything you can do to slow down professional car thieves or joy-riders will make your vehicle a less appealing target.

What You Can Do

Here are some ways you can protect your vehicle:

  1. Keep your vehicle locked at all times, even while driving.
  2. When parked, never leave your keys in the car. Close all the windows and the sunroof.
  3. Never leave your car running and unattended.
  4. Avoid leaving valuables inside your vehicle where passersby can see them.
  5. Do not leave your vehicle title in the car. Too often a car thief is pulled over and gets away from the police because he or she can produce the auto registration. (If multiple drivers use the vehicle, the best suggestion would be to hide the registration in a secret location in the car that only the owners know.)
  6. Know where you’re going. Avoid known high crime areas even if the alternate route takes longer.
  7. Install an anti-theft system in your vehicle if it doesn’t have one. Thieves are reluctant to steal vehicles if they know the cars can be recovered quickly. Many insurers offer discounts for the types of systems listed below.
  8. Thieves prefer to work in the dark. Be particularly cautious at night about where you park your car. Park it in a well-lit area if possible.
  9. Look around. Be aware of your surroundings, especially in garages, parking lots and gas stations.
  10. Have your car’s vehicle identification number (VIN) etched on each of the windows. Car thieves want to get off cheap. They don’t want to go to the expense of replacing all the glass.
  11. On an incline, leave your car in park or in gear with the wheels turned toward the curb or some other obstruction. This makes it harder for thieves to tow your vehicle.
  12. If confronted by a carjacker, do not resist. Cars can be replaced; you can’t.

Types Of Anti-Theft Systems

  • A mechanism that locks onto the steering wheel can be a very visible sign that you’ve taken steps to protect your vehicle
  • Ignition cut-off systems that prevent a car from being started
  • Some new cars come with passive alarms that activate automatically when the key is removed from the ignition
  • One system emits a signal that can be tracked by the police

Who You’re Dealing With

Professional Thieves

  • Professionals commit the majority of auto thefts
  • They prefer high-performance cars, as well as less exotic, more popular models whose parts are interchangeable
  • These thieves usually turn the cars they steal over to “chop shops,” which dismantle them and sell the parts
  • They also steal cars for export to other countries, often “stealing to order” to fulfill requests for certain types of vehicles

Joy-Riders

Joy-riders favor high-performance or luxury cars. These cars are usually recovered but often suffer significant damage.

“Bump-and-Rob”

Carjackers may bump your car from the rear, then steal it when you get out to look for damage. When stopped at a traffic light, leave room to maneuver around the vehicle ahead if you need to. If another car bumps yours and you feel threatened, drive to a populated area or, if you have a cellular phone, call the police for assistance.

How to Avoid a Carjacking

How do you avoid a car jacking? It’s a scary notion for many, but it’s important to think about these things beforehand so that you can act accordingly if you’re ever caught in a situation.

If you’ve read the news headlines, you’ll see that carjacking seems increasingly commonplace. Sad, but true – and even more reason for you to know how to deal with it should the situation arise:

  • A man robbed at gunpoint by a woman who got out of a van that pulled up behind his car.
  • A college student was abducted by two men who bumped her car from behind. When she got out to check for damage, the men abducted her.
  • A young mother dragged to her death when a carjacker pulled her from her car at gunpoint and drove off before she could disentangle herself from her seatbelt.

Tips to Avoid Becoming a Victim

Avoid becoming a victim and take a new approach to your personal safety. Below are some rules to help discourage those who seek to do harm:

  • Don’t roll your windows down for a stranger. Approaching you may be their attempt to gain entry to your vehicle.
  • If you are stopped by a law enforcement officer, ask for proper identification if the situation feels the least bit suspicious.
  • Don’t open your car door without first checking to see if anyone is hiding in your vehicle.
  • Try to keep some distance between your car and other cars at a traffic signal or stop sign. If a stranger approaches your car and you feel uncomfortable, do what is needed to get out of the area.
  • Don’t get out of your car in a strange neighborhood to inspect damage if someone bumps into your car. Instead, drive to the nearest well-lit store or service station. Then, get out of your car.
  • Beware suspicious activity on overpasses. If you suspect foul play, slow down, speed up, or change lanes.
  • Make sure that the windows are up and the doors are locked before you start your car.
  • Don’t panic. If you find yourself in a scary situation, a clear head is likely to get you out of trouble.

Above all, be careful and use good judgment. Ensure your personal safety by developing and implement your own “defensive driving” techniques. To learn more, contact Pop-A-Lock Jacksonville today at 904-246-4590.

Ignition Giving You Problems? Call Pop-A-Lock Jacksonville

It may be hard to believe, but when you have ignition problems, locksmiths can often be a cost-saving resource. While an auto repair shop or dealership can help with many repairs, they are not the only places to have a vehicle repaired.

Understanding Car Ignitions and Common Problems
The ignition controls a car’s power with a turn of a key. When a driver puts the car’s key into the ignition, it turns a lock that then triggers the electric ignition switch. The ignition switch connects the car starter to the battery, which delivers a surge of electricity to the motor, allowing the car to start.

The ignition can fail in two ways. Now and again, there are issues with the electric ignition switch. In this situation, drivers can insert and turn their car keys, but the engine doesn’t turn over. This issue, then, is a job for an auto repair technician.

However, the lock cylinder in the ignition can also fail. Drivers will know the lock cylinder fails if they find they can’t insert the key into the ignition, or if the key refuses to turn and catches in the lock. In such cases, a professional locksmith can repair the lock mechanism, helping the car owner avoid a costly trip to the mechanic or dealership.

The average price to replace an ignition at a dealership can be an astounding $375, and an independent mechanic may charge anywhere from $275 to $325 for this service. In both instances, the car will need to be towed to the repair bay, adding more expense to your overall bill.

How a Professional Locksmith Can Help
Instead of paying the high rates of an auto mechanic, Pop-A-Lock can replace the lock mechanism in a car ignition and are able to perform the service wherever the vehicle happens to be. Not only does this save you the cost of a repair at a shop, it also saves the hassle and cost of getting their cars towed.

If you find yourself unable to turn the key in your car’s ignition, call the professionals at Pop-A-Lock Jacksonville before calling your mechanic or dealership. In many cases, Pop-A-Lock may be able to save you 50 percent of the cost of a mechanic’s repair. If you’re stranded in a car with a key that refuses to turn, call Pop-A-Lock Jacksonville today at 904-246-4590 to schedule an appointment.