Fucking bastards were watching my car, got the VIN number and had a god damn mother effing key made! Now the good news is I got it back, thanks to Lo-Jack, but I'm afraid they are going to come after it again. I mean, they went through all that trouble to get a key made, I doubt they will let it slide. They broke a few things and stole my GPS...and a fucking case of water from the trunk

So some tips for YOU, my dear orgers. BLOCK OUT the vin number on your dash or wherever it is that you can see it from the outside. Also, if you have a GPS do NOT, I repeat do NOT program your home address in it. My car was stolen from my boyfriends house in the city, but I now fear they will find my residence and watch it there as well. Of course I could be paranoid but I digress...

A few of my moms friends were tailgating at a football game. They went into the game and someone broke into their car and stole their GPS. They hit the 'home' button, went to their house and robbed their house as well, because they knew they were at the game.

God damn shitbags will stop at nothing. Protect yourself and your property. Just a few simple steps can help!!

can it be fingerprinted?

I am taking our home address off my GPS today!!!

thanks for the tips

CarrieLee said:

Great idea.

that is horrible

might want to check local laws before blocking out VIN numbers, I don't think you're allowed to tamper with those plates!

orging from a Wii sux hard when your rig is down...

oh, and really sorry to hear about what happened!!

DAMN, sorry girl - that sucks!!

RenHoek said:

U can put tape over it. It is your car.

Graycap23 said:

There are other vin numbers on the car and insurance takes pictures of them when you first insure. I had no idea people were doing this and how easy it is to do. In a perfect world the dealerships are supposed to ask for registration or proof its your vehicle...but we all know we do not live in a perfect world!

CHIC0 said:

It is so hard to prove that the cops don't even do that anymore. My car was found at a residence in the city and they didn't even go into the house and ask questions. I guess it's not worth it because they get away with everything.

Its like you work hard and play by the rules...yet you still lose. These criminals have more rights than the innocent and it does not sit well with me at all. I'm lucky I got my car back but had I known about these little tips before I *may* have been able to prevent it, or at least make it a little harder.

I also found out that if your car is stolen your god damn insurance premium goes up! WTF?!!! Its not my fault it got stolen, I didn't have a sign on it that said steal me, I'm easy. I can see if you put in 3 claims in one year but I've been driving for 16 years and have NEVER, not ONCE put in a claim. That sucks shit, man!

if you can find out what dealership made the key, you can have their ass....they are required to check ownership before making keys by VIN...obviously they always don't...but they could be responsible for any expenses you've incurred

thejason said:

Ya but how the heck am I supposed to figure that out? Nobody will give that information up!

CarrieLee said:

call dealerships in your area that service your model and tell them you had a key made that doesnt work...they'll have the info on file if they did make it... most likely...

a little lying goes along way
[Edited 1/19/10 12:04pm]

Graycap23 said:

You can, but in many places it is illegal.

Mars23 said:

Mars23 said:

When I get home, tape is going on all of my vins.

Graycap23 said:

I don't give a shit if its illegal...it's also illegal to steal a car from getting a key made but nothing happened to these bastards. It's my property, I'll do what I want!

It also sucks that you need to keep your registration in your car at all times. It has your personal information on there...i.e. home address. People are crazy these days and I think it sucks we can't protect ourselves because 'it's against the law'.

I find it very disturbing that the police will hunt me down for a parking ticket or boot my car, yet they can't fingerprint my car and take up charges on the thieves. Unreal.

I don't know what to say. This FUCKING SUCKS!!!!!

CarrieLee said:

Exactly right. Keep a copy of yiur reg in your wallet, not your car. A small photo copy should do.

thejason said:

That CAN'T be the only place the VIN is listed on your car...

ahh shit! that sux carrie! sorry to hear that happened to you.

JustErin said:

It's the only place that u can see it without being in the car, under the hood or other places.

Graycap23 said:

So, perfect.

Why would it be illegal to hide it only the windshield when it is also listed elsewhere? Perhaps it's just that it's illegal to remove the VIN from all locaations of the vehicle. That makes more sense.
[Edited 1/19/10 13:27pm]

JustErin said:

They should just stop making keys by the vin number, sooo ridiculous.

I didn't even know you could make a key from a VIN. Sooooo covering it up with tape as soon as I wipe all that dust off.

JustErin said:

it wouldnt be illegal to hide it, per se...if something gets laid across it so it's hidden, that's fine...if tape is used to cover it, that's considered tampering and most places that's illegal...

Damn, that really sucks.