Shoppers who follow a list of “don’ts” can help ensure that they do have a happier holiday shopping season.
Police Chief Mike Heffron has provided a number of suggestions that can prevent thefts from cars, homes and even from shopping carts. All center on withholding what every thief needs to be successful.
“It’s opportunity,” Heffron said. “Maybe the thief wasn’t even planning on it until he saw the opportunity.”
Cars need to be locked when left unattended, he said. Don’t leave packages stored overnight in vehicles and try to park in well-lit areas. The latter is particularly important when transporting gifts from one shopping area to another.
“Take a blanket with you,” he advised, to toss over gifts that might be exposed in a vehicle that does not have a trunk — or a vehicle that already has a trunkload.
“Before you walk away from your car, check, see how inviting it looks” to thieves, he said. “We still have people breaking out a $200 car window to steal a $40 item.”
A brightly lit Christmas tree, with mounds of wrapped packages below, makes an enticing target for burglars. Heffron recommended a ploy to confuse potential Grinches.
“Keep them guessing,” he said. “When you leave, vary the lights you leave on. ...Turn off the Christmas tree lights. Have trusted neighbors check on the house.”
People who carry purses need to take extra precautions, including not leaving a purse in a shopping cart while examining the merchandise. Heffron anticipated an influx of fast-fingered thieves will be in this area during the shopping season. Some of them come in from larger cities to prey on unsuspecting shoppers in smaller cities.
“During Christmastime and holidays, that’s almost an industry,” he said. “They come down and just wait for somebody to do that. ... Don’t leave your purse in the cart; don’t leave your purse unzipped.”
High-end technology items, such as laptop computers, Nintendo-type games and flat-screen monitors have been refined to the extent that now, because of their small sizes, they’re increasingly becoming targets for thieves.
“It’s just a lot easier to pick it up and go,” he said.
HunterO (anonymous) says...
Many retailers took a big hit this year's holiday shopping season, and didn't quite get all the extra cash they were planning on, even though more people used payday loans. Retail sales have been down for some time, and it doesn't look like it is going to pull up anytime soon. 14,000 more stores are predicted to close throughout the next year, but one sector of retail is actually expected to grow – discount stores, where payday loans aren't required to shop. Discount retailers like the Buffalo Exchange, Goodwill and Salvation Army have been seeing larger profit margins whilst the major retailers have been posting losses.
With all the extra cash they’re bringing in, there is no doubt secondhand stores will have a strong year in 2009, check out this article at http://personalmoneystore.com/moneybl...
January 13, 2009 at 3:01 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )