People Hear No Evil On Car Alarms
Sydney Morning Herald
Wednesday December 11, 1991
Car alarms no longer alarm people. They just annoy them.
The audible car alarm has "had its day", according to the Commissioner of Police, Mr Lauer, who claims that people have become so blase about alarms they just ignore them.
Mr Lauer said people were ignoring the piercing sounds even when vehicles were being stolen.
"I really think their impact is decreasing as most of society has grown accustomed to false alarms," Mr Lauer said, addressing the third Motor Vehicle Theft Steering Committee meeting in Sydney yesterday.
"Some people have become blase about the alarm noises to the extent that many now walk past an activated device.
"It seems the audible alarm has had its day."
While the NRMA encourages people to use alarms if they are fitted, the general manager of NRMA Insurance, Mr Peter Corrigan, said the reliability of car alarms was a major concern.
Mr Corrigan said the latest NRMA car theft report showed that alarms had not been activated before the theft in 85 per cent of cars which had them.
"It seems that if the cat or the dog had accidentally stood on the car and activated the alarm, the car owner turned it off," Mr Corrigan said.
"We encourage people to use anti-theft devices if they have them, but we do have concerns about the reliability of alarms."
Mr Lauer said new engine immobilisation systems, such as those recently introduced into some Holden and Nissan cars, were the most effective anti-theft devices and would be embraced by the motoring public.
He said he was confident car buyers would soon lobby other manufacturers to adopt similar products.
© 1991 Sydney Morning Herald
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