Unfortunately this also makes them targets for car thieves. That's where car alarms come in to play. With their loud sirens and flashing lights, they're supposed to make excellent deterrents. There's just one problem?.they drive people crazy. Since most of them seem to have a hair trigger, they're set off if the slightest bit of movement is detected. This doesn't sit well with the neighbors, many of whom wake up several times a night because of noisy car alarms.
It's not that anyone wants to encourage car theft, but a sane person can only take so much. It's estimated that ninety percent of all car alarm activations are not due to theft at all. In 2001, eighty three percent of the complaints to New York City Police Department's Quality of Life Hotline were in regard to car alarms. In fact, ninety one percent of New Yorkers surveyed believed that noises due to car alarms diminished their quality of life. These days, car alarms go off so often that people don't even go to their windows anymore to check.
Since newer vehicles are equipped with immobilization devices, there's really no need to install a car alarm. Especially since no one takes them seriously anymore. In fact, car alarms are used more often to locate one's car in a crowded mall parking lot than to deter a potential thief. According to a report by Transportation Alternatives, car alarms do so little to prevent theft that many insurance companies are no longer offering a discount to those who install these devices. Studies have also shown that repeated exposure to noise pollution caused by car alarms decreases worker productivity causes property values to do down and diminishes a child's scholastic aptitude.
If car alarms don't work and only serve as an annoyance, it stands to reason that they shouldn't be necessary and in fact, shouldn't be allowed. If you feel they're a nuisance and would like to do something about them, contact your police department and inquire as to where you should register your complaint. If enough people take a stand against car alarms, they may succeed in silencing them for good.
The sad part of the story is that professional thieves have worked their way around these car alarms and have devised means of getting past them leaving you high and dry when you realize that you car has been stolen in spite of an installed alarm.
To add to the annoyance, car alarms have stopped being effective fro more reasons that one. These days no one gets up and takes action when a car alarm goes off since it is assumed that it must be an over sensitive car alarm that has gone off due to one reason or another.
The only reaction that these alarms solicit is one of annoyance, irritation and anger toward the owner of the car. These sensitive car alarms can be set off by relatively loud thunder, a neighbor mowing the lawn or an unexpected strong blast of wind that may shake the car a bit. Statistics show that 95% of the alarms that go off are false and leave the owner peeved and miffed at having invested in a useless machine. These car alarms are probably of any consequence only in the rural areas where the sound of an alarm is not a usual sound that one hears every day and discards as a false one.
In spite of all the car alarm bashing that we are up to, we will have to admit that there are indeed some advantages of having a car alarm fixed. One direct advantage is the fact that cars fitted with alarms attract a lesser car insurance premium because companies believe that they have a lesser chance of being made the target of the next theft. And to a large extent it is true and seeing flashing light on the dashboard may desist some unprofessional thieves from trying their luck with your car when there are so many others in the car park. Keep in mind that a talented car thief may still be able to outsmart the machine and be off with our car before you can even utter the words car alarm!
All in all given that it does reduce the probability of a car theft, installing a car alarm is a good idea. But reducing the annoyance that it causes you and your neighbors is also equally important. Firstly, try and see if you can find some alternatives to a car alarm. If not, then you may want to consider deactivating it during an impending thunderstorm. You could also buy a high-end car alarm and adjust it according to the sounds in and around your house.
Both James Hunt & Kenneth Scott are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
James Hunt has sinced written about articles on various topics from History, Virtual Private Network and Mobile Phone Reviews. James Hunt has spent 15 years as a professional writer and researcher covering stories that cover a whole spectrum of interest.Read more at