Are you shopping for a stranger this christmas?

Mobile Electronics and Security Federation advise motorists how to protect their Christmas shopping when left unattended in a car.

The Christmas shopping season is now well underway. We are all busy buying gifts for family and friends but could we also be buying for people we don’t know?

Thieves also celebrate Christmas. In fact they enjoy it immensely because their job is easier as we load our cars with presents and provisions and leave them unattended in car parks and side streets. Just putting shopping out of sight in the boot is not enough. It’s still easy prey for the thief – the stranger.

Every car will have an immobiliser to prevent it from being driven away but what about an alarm to warn away a thief intent on stealing your Christmas shopping? If you do have an alarm, do you know if it is working? Modern security systems are now so reliable that we rarely hear the ‘false alarms’ that were such a nuisance a few years ago but do you check that your alarm is working properly and has not failed in the ‘off’ state?

Take your car to have its alarm system checked by a professional specialist such as one accredited in the Mobile Electronics and Security Federation’s Approved Specialist network of installers. They have the skills and experience to thoroughly test the operation of your system. They can also service it for you to ensure it works over the Christmas period and beyond. They can advise you if it needs upgrading or replacing. MESF Approved Specialists have technicians trained and qualified to work on your car.

If you don’t have an alarm, there is still time to have one fitted before the Christmas shopping period peaks. The latest alarms will cost less than you think even when installed by professionals such as MESF Approved Specialists. They can often be linked to your car’s existing remote control central locking so you do not have to learn any new procedures to secure your car and save your shopping from the thief. Just imagine the grief and disappointment you would suffer if a thief takes your Christmas shopping.