PARKED OFF
I left my £40k Audi in ‘secure’ multi-storey car park but the next day it was ransacked… thieves took everything
He thinks thieves got into the car by put putting a brick through the window
AN AUDI driver parked their £40,000 motor in a secure multi-storey car park only for it to get ransacked by thieves who left it on bricks.
James, 57, returned to the Birmingham National Car Parks (NCP) multi-story complex to find his A3 completed plundered.
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The car had its windows smashed, console sawn off, as well as its steering wheel and wheels stolen, .
James was "angry and shocked" when he returned to the car park on Newhall Street after he had been visiting friends to find the scene.
He had parked at 7pm on Tuesday night and returned at 8am the next morning.
James said: "I was a bit shocked when I opened the door and there was no steering wheel. They put a brick through the window, climbed in opened the boot got the tools out the boot which they also stole.
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"At that point, I wasn't able to get angry I was shocked. Thank God I didn't turn up when they were taking the wheels off it is not a one-man job."
"Whoever has done it has done it to order. NCP waived my parking charges and said they escalated it to the incident team.
"If it had not been for my insurance company I would have been crying in the corner."
James was unable to find anyone from NCP to talk to, so called their centre and also spoke to police.
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A spokesperson from West Midlands Police said they were now investigating the incident.
They said: "We were alerted to the theft of parts from an Audi parked on a car park in Newhall Street which happened some time overnight of Tuesday 4 June into 5 June.
"We have requested CCTV from the car park in an effort to identify the offenders.
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"We fully understand the upset, frustration and impact this type of crime has on victims.
"We're working hard to combat car crime and this includes regular warrants on suspected chop shops, which is often where parts end up.
"If anyone has information about the theft from this Audi, please get in touch via Live Chat on our website quoting crime reference 20/559274/24."
An NCP spokesperson said: "We take all crime in our car parks very seriously and work hard to try to stop people entering our car parks for reasons other than parking.
"We are very sorry that this incident occurred whilst the customer was parked on our car park. Unfortunately, crime is an issue that we, and all businesses that have buildings open to the public, are trying to prevent.
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"We do try to keep our car parks as secure as possible, but when our security doors are vandalised then we have to go through the processes of repairing, only for them to be vandalised again.
"We have recruited extra staff for our Birmingham sites and have made sure they are covering important shift times to discourage this type of crime and will continue to do all we can from our side to stop this type of crime, alongside the meetings with the relevant people who can help reduce crime in this community."
What are your rights in this situation?
If your car was stolen or damaged in a private car park you would need to check the terms and conditions you used their service under.
Private car parks could state in the Ts&Cs that they have no responsibility for damage or theft that happens on their property.
If that is the case, they are likely to have signs up that say drivers are leaving their cars "at their own risk".
That would leave a victim without any claim against the parking operator.
However, they might still be able to help you by providing CCTV that you could then provide to your insurance company and to the police.
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