My wife was filling up with gas last Friday. Got out of the car, closed the door, and started the process to put gas in the car. (She was down to two bars).
Meanwhile, the lady in the car next to her comes up, opens up the door, and gets in the drivers seat. My wife immediately comes over and asks her what she is doing. The woman (in her 50s) tells my wife how much she loves these cars, and proceeds to ask her a bunch of questions (You know which ones they are). Meanwhile she gets out of the car.
The woman finishes her gas up, and so does my wife, and they both leave.
A few minutes later my wife realizes her cell phone is missing, which was on the passenger seat, along with her purse (purse not missing). When she got home, a search of her purse revealed nothing missing from the purse, but that her cell phone was indeed missing.
A call to verizon confirmed cell phone use after she noticed it missing. She had the phone placed out of order. We go buy her a new one today.
Moral of the story: Stay the HeXX out of my car, Next person jumps in might get shot.
Oh, and I really wanted to post this story so that others get the lesson we have learned and not let people just jump in your car. Or, not even let then in in the first place. In this bad economy, this sort of thing will happen more and more.
At the station, I usually lock the car, unlock just long enough to open the tank's lid, then lock again. It is so simple with the fob.
Paranoďa? Possibly. But, the story above is a sad one. Sorry!
I had never thought of this angle... I've had a few people ask if they can sit in it, and never thought of theft. Now this, plus my natural paranoia in other areas, will make sure that I only do that if my front seat is empty.
yellow-smart: (assuming the woman in fact stole the phone) Gas stations have security cameras. File a police report soon and the video will be secured into evidence to convict this person. Sure, it's just a cell phone and you may be out only a hundred bucks or so... but the woman was likely a habitual thief that should receive the consequences of the crime.
She didn't get in the passenger seat, she got in the drivers seat. The phone and purse were on the passenger seat.
I'll mention to her to lock the car from now on when gassing.
Its this sort of BS that keeps me saying we both need to get consealed weapons permit.
I'll got talk to the station myself. No luck with police helping me out recently (identity theft victim).
At the risk of going there, If your wife was carrying a consealed weapon wouldn't it have been in the purse, and thus almost in the hands of the person who jumped into your wifes car?
...we in the other hand encourage people to sit in the smart so they can judge for themselves the size and comfort of the car....took our smart to a Mustang show down in KY last month, 'mind you that we have been going to this show for 8 years now, and I love driving my Stang, but the knowledge of showing our smart to a totally different kind of car people was too much....BTW the club parked our car right next to registration tent and under a giant shelter...needless to say it was the star of the show...and yes when we get asked if they can check it out ....hell yes
...yellow-smart...maybe you need to move to a lesser crime area...
I did not think you would be able to lock the car if one of the doors, rear lid, or fuel cover was open? Did I miss something?
Yellow-Smart
Well, I did it just Friday: stopped the car at the pump, locked it (three beeps) to go in and tell the cashier that I want to fill it up. Went back to the car, unlocked it (one beep) to open the gas tank lid and immediately locked it again (three beeps) while filling the car. No issue there.
To give you an idea of the situation, the station ("Lowest Price") is on Wisconsin Ave NW, in the middle of Georgetown, where lots of pedestrians are walking by. That's why I don't want the car to stay unlocked while I'm not in it; even at such a short distance as just the other side, while pumping.
Try it for yourself.
Your scenario is a little different from my wifes. I believe she was at the pump the entire time, using a CC to pay. She never left the general vicinity of the car.
For your scenario I would most definately lock the car, no question.
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