SPRINGFIELD — Police said warming up your car in the winter can make you more susceptible to it being stolen.
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Springfield police said they’re not asking for people to stop warming up their cars in their driveway.
They’ve seen a recent uptick in car thefts across the city.
“I want to say we had six or eight successful thefts over the weekend. We probably had 15 to 20 attempts over the weekend when they were not successful,” Sgt. Dan Harris said.
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The same thing is happening in Kettering.
Last winter there were 20 car thefts between November and December, and 10 more through January and February this year.
Kettering police added most of the cars that were stolen while running happened between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m.
“We understand that they want to be warm. Criminals do, too. And they will go around specifically looking for people leaving their vehicles unattended and running. And they’ll take the car,” Cynthia James, public information officer with Kettering police said.
Both police departments recommend locking your car when you are warming it up, even if it’s just in your driveway. They also suggested using a remote start if your car has it.
“If you’re just going out to start the car, do not leave any valuables inside it while it’s warming up just to be safe,” James said.
Kettering police said they are trying to be proactive and increase patrols.
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