Quick Tip: Preventing car break-ins

It may sound simple, but law enforcement officials say the most important thing you can do to prevent a car break-in is to make sure not to leave anything inside the car. That advice has been around a long time, but many people still ignore it.

Even something as small as a phone charger cord or Fastrak transponder that is left in view can make your vehicle a target for thieves. So take all your belongings with you whenever you leave your car.

The Alameda County Sheriff's Department says one solution that works for some people is leaving their car unlocked, so thieves don't break the windows looking for valuables that are not there.

In some cases, people are even leaving signs on their parked cars saying the car is unlocked and there are no valuables inside.

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