the deed hasn't happened yet, but it will. my GF works at a nursing home and over the years she has worked there almost EVERYONES car has been keyed. its in a bad neighborhood and the nursing home refuses to put cameras in the parking lot even though they know everyone cars are always getting keyed. its not side street parking, u actually have to go out of your way to get into the facility car park and only staff park there (sometimes day visitors). my GF thinks its just some randoms or kids walking though there acting stupid. but im pretty confident that it has to be one of the disgruntled staff members who secretly hates on everybody because of the location of the car park. i have picked up my GF from work most days over the years but she has recently got her licence and i think now is a good time to buy her a car (EOFY sales, maybe i30). we have talked about her driving to work and what we will do WHEN the new car get keyed. not if, when… its just so weird to just EXPECT your new car to be keyed and for us to discuss what to do when it gets keyed…. we have talked back and forth about getting a very cheap second hand car instead just for the fact that it will 100% get keyed, so we wont feel so bad. but i relay want all the safety mod cons in a new car as she has just got her licence. she also really likes her job and gets along with her work mates so does not want to change jobs.
so im really stumped on what to do.
the only thing i can think of is some sort of 360 camera in the car, that films when movement is detected. so i could confront the staff member (im sure it is a staff member) and get them fired. but dont know if that camera exists or if it would even be effective.
How to Catch a Serial Car Keyer? 360 Camera?
Last edited 18/05/2018 - 21:50
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Imagine how we drove and parked before Bluetooth and rear cameras.
Remember back in the days when there were only manual vehicles and we could drink and drive. Automatic transmissions and mobile rbt came along and changed driver experiences and behaviour. Peoples lifes changing because of technology is inevitable.
and we could drink and drive.
No.
<1950s
a second had i30 is still to expensive to be scratched. a 1k bomb is what i was thinking about.
Get her a DeLorean, any scratches will buff right out.
My car doesn't even have power steering, windows or locks. It has a key for the fuel cap and no left hand mirror!
I have no practical advice to give you regarding the car or camera.
But I am intrigued by your whodunnit mystery. Job for a good sleuth. Keep us updated on what you do and if you capture the culprit.
Let me see if I can get it right ozbargain style.
It's your gf's fault for parking there! You have insurance, just take the excess on the chin, live and learn. Tell her to find a new job in a better neighbourhood! Get a second hand falcon for $1k if you can't afford to repaint an i30 two times a year! Rent a closed door single garage where she can park so the car won't get keyed! Stop trying to act like a SJW recording everyone and then confronting them like a criminal! You are at fault for them keying your car in the future.
etc…
I'd personally find a gated car park and walk the rest of the way if afraid of keying or the 360 camera is also a viable option. Just keep in mind that the police won't do much even if you have video evidence so I'm not sure what help the recording would be other than finding the culprit and dealing with him/her yourself.
that the police won't do much even if you have video evidence
Uh … really?
Uh … really?
Unfortunately yeah really.
Police won't do much "eh, could be anyone" (been there, seen the video), management might if you can ID a worker.
Or upload it to Facebook and see how good their facial recognition is these day.
Yes civil court case
Yes. Police are useless. Had my motorcycle stolen, they did nothing. I found a witness, wouldn't talk to her. When it was found (trashed) there was a helmet and gloves in it under the seat that weren't mine,they refused to accept them as evidence to fingerprint them or anything. The police's job is just to sit in the break room and chat and laugh about the people that need their help who they have no plans whatsoever to help. It would not surprise me on the slightest if OP caught the guy red handed with video evidence and the police refused to accept the video as evidence and wouldn't do anything beyond giving OP a police report number for insurance purposes.
if OP caught the guy red handed with video evidence
We hired some private detectives to video some vandalism.
Had him on tape coming out of his workplace, doing his usual thing and them heading on back. We knew who he was.
"Yeah, that could be anyone…"
I have dash cam footage including the registration plates of the offender. Police told me car was registered to a company and ‘these things take a long time’. 13 months later - nothing/zip/zilch/zero.
Police have fined people in the past so it is not impossible
http://www.news.com.au/technology/innovation/motoring/city-o…
She could print a few copies of this articke and paste up in the carpark as a deterrent.
Get a dashcam and make it super visible.
Agreed with others - park further away and walk.
the train station is 3min walk away from her work. and she works about 45min (no traffic) drive away from where we live. i pick her up because i dont want her to walk that 3min, the neighborhood is just that bad. she needs to be in that carpark
If that's the case, you may just need to accept that cars will get keyed. Once it's a bit less new, it won't bother you as much. Alternatively, buy a used car so you won't feel so bad?
(sorry if this isn't what you want to hear but if having the car parked that close to work is the priority from a safety perspective too, I feel that a car getting keyed isn't going to make a difference).
For what it's worth though, if you really want camera footage, maybe see if her employer is willing to let you install CCTV (ie pay the cost)? You could always use a wireless self-powered camera like a Netgear Arlo Pro (not cheap and requires something to plug into the wireless router… unless you buy the $600 inbuilt 4G model), and leave it on to catch them?
Are there really that bad neighbourhoods in Australia that you can't walk 3 minutes through them?
If people are regularly keying cars for fun, I wouldn’t want to be walking too far alone either. Especially if she had a late shift and it was dark.
Just got her licence plus cars getting keyed = time to get a Daewoo Matiz.
Getting that car keyed would actually make it look nicer
The OP story is reminiscent of the pain of a friend of mine who parks her car near a school where majority of students belong to a peaceful religion. It's only that some exceptions produce a steady stream of keyed car doors.
I advised her to move north, away from those suburbs, but she keeps saying she loves the street she grew up in. Talking about sentimental…Don't get me started about those street or suburb snobs who cannot leave their snobby suburb just because of the postcode
Please put some line breaks or paragraphs in your story one big paragraph is just so wrong
You dislike using punctuation, though?
No, I just wanted you to read fast, no need for an apostrophe to delineate a small pause.
At one line, my post was easier to read than op's with one block of text. BTW, don't you have some bargains to look for , rather than troll?
I would be more concerned about your GFs safety than keyed cars, The car park is a better option than walking through the streets, particularly if she leaves/arrives after dark. I don’t understand why the nursing home won’t invest in cameras to keep their workers safe. I would look into getting the camera to see who is hanging around the parking lot, you may have a bigger issue to raise with the management.
If it is going to get keyed, buy an older car, something that won’t matter if it gets scratched.
She is an adult but you seem to need to do and organise everything for her.
Do they have a union rep she can talk to?
If you’re convinced it will happen, buy a car that’s already keyed and use the damage to bargain a better price.
Get an aftermarket Dog for the Car.
What car you get is ultimately up to you (I would personally go for a second hand new-ish car) but here's what you could do about the car keying:
- Buy 2 cheap-ish dash cams - approx $200.
- Hook them up to record in parking mode (or fully charged high capacity power bank).
(optional) Connect the power bank to a car charger so it always charges while car is being driven. - Place them on either side of the windscreen, far corners of the A-pillars so they capture a wide radius of anyone approaching from the front.
- Reverse park as close as possible (almost touching) a wall so person cant key the sides without entering the dash cam's field of view.
Bear trap
buy an already keyed car
Keying a car is the perfect crime isn't it? If you're an A-hole.
Cover the car with clear contact paper
It's possible to combine strategies, ie get a 5-10K car and the cameras. You'd feel less guilty running cables and stealth mounting stuff in a cheaper car anyway. Said car would have several airbags, ABS, ESC and probably nav. I don't know how much driving assistance you need, but my primary car has nothing. Not even ABS.
I've been driving the same model car since 1991 without injury.
Did you ever catch the guy?
Take a bus or train and walk if you don't want your car being vandalized
Just realised how old this thread is - sorry for adding to it.
Recently got her licence = get a second hand i30. You don't need mod cons. Imagine how we drove and parked before Bluetooth and rear cameras.