14 replies to this topic

[Algordo1100]

Last night someone broke in to my house through a window. I was asleep upstairs.

A friend of mine was asleep in the living room. Neither of us heard anything, nor did my dog who was with me.

My friends van was blocking my garage door luckily so my mini is still here but all of my keys have been stolen. 3 bunches. So everything for house, cars, garage, the lot!
I am very distressed.

I'm not sure what to do to secure my mini. They even have a beeper for the immobilizer (standard spi)

[Bobbins]

First priority has to be to phone a locksmith and get your house/garage locks changed, after that you can secure the Mini with additional protection even if it’s only a big chain through a wheel or two.
The local police, assuming you’ve reported it, are likely to send round a crime prevention officer to discuss your security and how to protect yourself in the future - most forces do this now because it’s cheaper for them to persuade you to look more into crime prevention than for them to be mopping up afterwards.
At the end of the day the most important thing is that you’re safe, the Mini can be replaced.

[Algordo1100]

First priority has to be to phone a locksmith and get your house/garage locks changed, after that you can secure the Mini with additional protection even if it’s only a big chain through a wheel or two.
The local police, assuming you’ve reported it, are likely to send round a crime prevention officer to discuss your security and how to protect yourself in the future - most forces do this now because it’s cheaper for them to persuade you to look more into crime prevention than for them to be mopping up afterwards.
At the end of the day the most important thing is that you’re safe, the Mini can be replaced.

I'm a big guy but this sort of stuff brings my anxiety on.

Yea I'm waiting for the police now. I've found all our Christmas presents (the non valuable ones) strewn about my street.

I can change all the house locks myself today. Luckily I have those skills and screwfix have the bits. I can disconnect the power to the garage door until I can get new beepers and reprogram. I suppose I will have secure the mini somehow until I can get new locks for it. I don't know how to reprogram an SPI immobilizer tho.

Yea. I'm sure the police will give security advice when they get here.

Not happy.

[mab01uk]

Very sorry to hear this, it seems to be happening pretty much everywhere now, not helped by many Police forces having publicly stated that burglary is given a low priority and that those caught get very light sentences (if any) and are released a short time later. Watch any Police TV documentary and after a lot of effort to track down the culprits, usually at the end of the programme the sentences listed are minimal or suspended even after repeated offences.

Locally many of my neighbours have often had CCTV footage of the crime against their property but the wearing of hoodies, etc means rarely is it good enough to identify those involved. The latest increase in car crime around London seems to be the stealing of catalytic converters from cars (especially Toyota/Lexus hybrids) in broad daylight from shopping centre car parks and from residential driveways at night.

 

Might be a good idea to remove the battery from your Mini until you can sort out the immobilizer so it can't be started with the stolen key.

Edited by mab01uk, 24 November 2019 - 11:10 AM.

[Algordo1100]

Still waiting on the police. This happened in Leeds.

Interestingly I have found my garage keys and mini keys separated from my bunch and tossed into the gutter on my street. So only one garage door remote and my house keys are missing.

The garage had been unlocked and entered via the side door, but nothing missing. Nothing of value anyway.

It is my belief they were looking for the keys to my friends van to steel that. But his keys were in his pocket in his jacket pocket, not near mine.

So all mini keys accounted for. But why take my door keys?

[TheFabMini]

Short term id remove the battery/put on axle stands/ wheels off. Maybe steering wheel off. That way it slows down or stops any attempt to take the car..

Oh a side note when I moved to my current house the previous owner kept motorbikes in the garage and had a ground anchor fitted. If I’m ever away for a few days I put a bike chain around the subframe so it’s bolted to the floor. Once again not fool proof but they would have to cause a lot of noise and take time getting it out

[Algordo1100]

Short term id remove the battery/put on axle stands/ wheels off. Maybe steering wheel off. That way it slows down or stops any attempt to take the car..

Oh a side note when I moved to my current house the previous owner kept motorbikes in the garage and had a ground anchor fitted. If I’m ever away for a few days I put a bike chain around the subframe so it’s bolted to the floor. Once again not fool proof but they would have to cause a lot of noise and take time getting it out

Until I can be sure the garage is as secure as possible, I am considering moving my mini elsewhere.

I'm going to have to reprogram the remotes for the garage door.

It's made me so paranoid. Who is watching my house and new my partner was away? She hears everything.

How were they so quiet they did not alert my dog upstairs with me, or my friend asleep on my sofa. It's very strange.

[whistler]

Very sorry to hear this, it seems to be happening pretty much everywhere now, not helped by many Police forces having publicly stated that burglary is given a low priority and that those caught get very light sentences (if any) and are released a short time later. Watch any Police TV documentary and after a lot of effort to track down the culprits, usually at the end of the programme the sentences listed are minimal or suspended even after repeated offences.

Locally many of my neighbours have often had CCTV footage of the crime against their property but the wearing of hoodies, etc means rarely is it good enough to identify those involved. The latest increase in car crime around London seems to be the stealing of catalytic converters from cars (especially Toyota/Lexus hybrids) in broad daylight from shopping centre car parks and from residential driveways at night.

 

Might be a good idea to remove the battery from your Mini until you can sort out the immobilizer so it can't be started with the stolen key.

They'll push it out.

[johnR]

You need a new dog with bigger ears! Also, be careful what information you post even here - criminals use social media for a lot of their information.

[sonikk4]

It sucks badly when this happens and I cannot imagine the stress involved.

We had a near miss a couple of weeks ago and it was only my neighbour who is a very big unit that prevented a possible break in.
Mark chased them away ( I was at work) and not until he knocked on the door that my wife found out ( she was upstairs on the computer) That put the frighteners on her then which really peed me off. We were lucky unlike yourself but since then I have spent extra money on adding metal bars to my garage window on the inside. And for you all of this just before Xmas. Scumbags.

It may pay you to now look at household alarms as well or things like the Ring Cameras. That’s my next layout.

[wreckitralph]

ide be staying awake with a baseball bat  and sit in the garageon a camping chair    theyre unlikely to come back the next night but in 48 hours or so  ide as sugested take the wheels off  the car and put them in the attic or well away    from the car out of sight   security bars are cheap to do yourself  inside the garage    sorry this happened it could have been far worse its more the  worry of if they will come back and when and the fact they have the keys  sort all your locks for the house cctv isnt really that much of a deterent to a theif they just cover their face to be honest good locks and alarms  are the best

[Furyan]

That's bad news mate, it's always distressing when these things happen.

 

First thing is to find out how they got in then plan your defence from there.

 

Install some PIR and outside lights as high up as you can with mesh guards so they can't smash them. the scum  don't like light!

 

You can also get some PIR for inside the house wired in to your household lights or separate alarm.

 

Sack your dog, he's hopeless!!

 

Just joking, but things like leaving the doors open to the rooms before you go to bed could mean you would maybe better hear any attempted break in and it would also give the dog free run to investigate any noise it might hear.

 

I'm sure the local bobby will give you a few ideas going forward.

[Algordo1100]

Well. It's been an expensive day, changing all the lock barrels due to stolen keys. Plus repairing and securing the window that was forced.

As I said, bizarrely I found the keys for my mini in my street this morning so all mini keys and immobilizer fobs accounted for.

I've put a big chain on the gate too.
We've ordered some cctv cameras, the smart type that work with your phone and an alarm system too, with enough sensors to cover the shed.

It's all just deterrence and slowing them down so the scum pick an easier target. That's what the police said for advice.

I'm still fuming and a rather anxious. It's keeping me awake. The dog is snoring away though. Typical. Ha

It's just all the more reason I want to go home (to Queensland). Not that there is no crime there. Nowhere is perfect. But I feel safer in Aus. There's less scum I think. At least where I live. Burglaries still make the local news there.

[r3k1355]

You can thank the government, constant cuts to the police budget means they simply don't have the manpower to investigate many crimes now.

Domestic burglary has fallen into that category now.

 

Video doorbells are great, just having one can be enough to deter people.

Edited by r3k1355, 25 November 2019 - 03:59 PM.

[Bobbins]

There might be less scum back in Oz but they're all built like brick out houses!!!