Reader’s Warning: keyless car thefts

Driving back down to Prades from the UK, we stopped at a service station well south of Paris for petrol and some lunch. As we locked the car, a couple pushed past us. We were parked between two cars, with not much space in between so we didn’t think anything of it. We had lunch, returned to the still locked car, filled up with petrol and continued our journey, excited to be getting closer to our destination.It wasn’t until our next stop that we realised that there were things missing from the boot as well as my husband’s iPad (left under the seat – silly I know), spare money that we keep in a purse for emergencies, my son’s wallet containing his cards which he had left in his rucksack, and basically anything they could grab easily.From what we understand when we informed the gendarmes, (who weren’t overly interested or helpful) this is a known scam. The couple pushing past us must have scanned our key code – easy to do apparently – so that one of them could keep an eye on us in the service station whilst the other was able to open our car without a key….and lock it again afterward. What a start to our return to the P-O. Do please be careful out there. The most innocent looking people and the most normal looking behaviour is not always what it seems.

A Crime that’s on the Increase

A “keyless car” is one that doesn’t need to open with a traditional key (although most have that facility also).
It is accessed by a digital fob, card or smartphone app, usually with a push button on the inside to start the car.

Ring a bell? Is this your car?

Then you need to be aware that a well informed thief can enter or steal your car quickly and easily by intercepting the signal between car and remote control, tricking the car into believing it is responding to your digital key.