PARKED CARS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 4 October 1938, Page 9

PARKED CARS

PRECAUTIONS TO AVOID INTERFERENCE. t “The risk of having vehicles taken by unauthorised persons from parking places is still a contingency which every motorist should guard against,” says the latest safety message of the Automobile Association, Canterbury. “Motorists do not realise that they have it in their own power to protect themselves against .the inconvenience which they would suffer if their car was unlawfully taken. It is found that in most cases of unlawful conversion of motor vehicles the way has been made easy for removal of the vehicle because the owner has left his ignition key in the lock. Motorists who leave their cars at night, particularly in badly lighted thoroughfares, should make sure that the car doors are locked and the windows closed, and that the ignition key is not in the lock. The same remark about the ignition key applies to vehicles left in private garages, as there have been plenty of instances of cars having been stolen from private garages. “A person who steals a motor vehicle is usually not very careful about the speed he uses and the way he drives, and a motor vehicle being driven by a thief is therefore a potential menace to others on the roads. The question of danger, inconvenience to the owner, and damage to the vehicle are considerations which should weigh with motor owners. It is an old saying that locks are made only for honest people, but at the same time motorists will be doing themselves a great service if at all times they use any available safeguard against the theft of their vehicles.

“At night always leave the vehicle as close to a street light as possible, and take every precaution to ensure that your vehicle is not interfered with.”