Summertime Could Bring Rise In Car Break-Ins, Statistics Show

Statistics show your car may be increasingly at risk as we move through summer.

Car break-ins spike during these warmer months.

We hear it every day – “roll your windows up,” “lock your cars.”

Car break-ins have happened all over the area.

“I would estimate that this little community of 51 houses, they’ve probably cost this community over $20,000,” said Mike Goodman with a south Tulsa neighborhood homeowners association.

In Broken Arrow, Paige Morris says “it was interesting to see how brazen these people were to look straight in our cameras, and it didn’t phase them one bit.”

Tulsa police say that just since May 1st they have had 523 reported larcenies from vehicles.

How can you protect yourself?

“Regardless if you have nothing in there, keep your doors locked, keep your valuables out of sight, because these people go into there for change, the smallest thing,” said Mike Lowry, V.P. of Operations at Signal 88 Security.

Signal 88 provides security services for special events, some neighborhoods, and about 65 apartment communities from west Tulsa to Broken Arrow.

They say their officers are always on the lookout.

“We’re looking for suspicious people out late at night, two or three in the morning, walking through parking lots, looking into cars, trying multiple door handles,” said Lowry.

He says they usually see a spike in car break-ins in the summer months.

“The most obvious signs of car break-ins are damage to the door, busted window, things of that nature,” he said.

Lowry says you should report suspicious activity to law enforcement or your property manager.