Safety & Security in PP!!!

[Romana]

Pickpockets

I've just returned from a wonderful holiday in our beloved P.P.but sadly I was a pickpocket victim! For years I have warned family to take care especially in crowded places but I became a victim. I was visiting Pollensa Sunday market and only had my bag open twice- at PP bus station and on the market once to take out bottle of water. I had a deep cross body bag which was zipped. I'm amazed it happened. Thankfully I didn't have any cards in purse but did lose 100E Take care they are very very clever.

 

[lollipop]

Romana, they are very clever, I had a purse taken from a zipped up bag which was over my head and shoulder whilst in Prague and I didn't feel a thing. Hope it didn't spoil your holiday too much.

 

[barefoot]

I now always turn my bag round to make sure the closed zip tab is in front of me, rather than towards the back of me, so the little blighters don't get easy access. As you say, they are so light fingered.

 

[Belladonna]

It is a worry reading that they are actually managing to pickpocket even when you have zipped bags and compartments! So difficult to hold your shoulder bag infront of you all the time when looking at other things, or leaning over a stall, or even holding other bags or pushing a pram etc! High season is always going to be the most vulnerable time when you are dealing with the heat and crowds too. As has been said, it is perhaps the best thing to make sure you have split your money between you and your partner, or even leave some back in your apartment/hotel. Important cards should always either be photocopied beforehand for easy cancellation, or at least the numbers noted down. But it's the prevention before the deed that is the most important. I was given one of those "bags within a bag", in which you put your bits and bobs and just lift it out to put it in another bag. It works very well as a double security measure too.
Thanks to everyone for keeping us aware that this can still happen.

 

[Romana]

Hi Lollipop, no it didn't spoil our holiday. In fact we are returning to PP end of October for a last minute break before Winter sets in! Think we'll give the market a miss though!!

 

[Major Tom]

Hello, Good news of a sort, following my card being stolen in July and being used by
crooks to take 600 euro out of my BBV Bank in PP using ATM machines. I have now been refunded my money by CPP who are a insurance company where you can list all cards/passport/driving licence numbers. The Bank wrote a letter stating as a PIN number
was used they would not refund me, great help they were.
So I recommend CPP for peace of mind they only charge a small amount per year.
Lets hope they catch these people who ruin holidays.
P.S. I am going to return to PP next year !!

 

[Sparky]

So glad you have finally got your money back and that this hasn't put you off coming here .

I regularly read in the local press that these criminals are being caught by the police, unfortunately it's a sign of the times and crime always increases along with high unemployment levels .

 

[Ronnie]

Hired Car Thieves

I found it quite incredible when reading reports that thieves are always targeting hired cars!!!!!
Then to my amazment when I was in Mallorca in September, all the hired car companies now have their names emblazoned on the back window!!!. ( Centaur,Gold, Record etc)
Is this not an open invitation.

 

[Nick]

True. Noticed that last month with my "Sixt" hire car, big orange badge on the back! There's really no need for it other than advertising?
It certainly gives the criminal a head-start in identifying rental vehicles that may contain valuables etc?

Suppose you could just unstick it then put it back on upon returning it?!

 

[Tonsyl]

I'm not quite sure why and under what statute but when we hired on our last visit the guy from Hiper said that the law has been passed such that hire cars have to be identifiable and even more, a notice has to be displayed in the vehicle when it is unattended stating the period of hire and the renter. We had never come across this before but we were duly given the form to display and the car was "badged". Any local residents any ideas ?

 

[Mark]

Suppose you could just unstick it then put it back on upon returning it?!

As soon as we arrive my wife peels the sticker off and it is now stuck in the boot, we will stick it back on the rear window in a couple of weeks.

A big sticker just says to criminals
"follow me back to my rental villa so you know where we are staying then you can steal the cameras and laptops the next time we go out"

 

[sws97sdg]

Its not quite as easy as that, all hire cars also have big stickers on the side saying what fuel to use, unlike private cars, and also they all have the nice wheels and alloys taken off and replaced with bog standard wheels, also a dead give away!

 

[lovemallorca]

Its not quite as easy as that, all hire cars also have big stickers on the side saying what fuel to use, unlike private cars, and also they all have the nice wheels and alloys taken off and replaced with bog standard wheels, also a dead give away!

To be honest, at many times of the year, every third car in the area is a hire car! Not that many locals have brand-new cars, so you don't exactly need to be a master-criminal to guess which are hired.

Also, I don't think that anyone would need to follow you to work out which villas are holiday rentals - They all have a plaque on the front to show they are registered.

PP is incredibly safe, but there are lots of cheap flights into Palma, which make it a tempting destination if there are "rich pickings" to be had from tourists.

But as it has been said repeatedly on here, don't leave your brain at the airport!

Thieves usually don't bother breaking-into cars unless they have valuables that can be easily grabbed, so hide them away. If you have just arrived from the airport, drop your luggage at the villa before going to the supermarket, and get your valuables and excess cash and cards into the safe. Most owners and villa companies have no problem with you leaving your bags, even if your property is not yet ready. Failing that, consider leaving someone in the car whilst you shop?

Time and time again I drive along the lanes and see villas with the gates left open, front window and shutters wide open, whilst the occupants snooze around the pool at the rear or have headed off for the day.

I cannot excuse any theft, but the fact is, in many cases, we do leave ourselves more vunerable than perhaps we would if back home.

(I write this as someone who has had items stolen from our villa in PP, and to this day, I kick myself as I know that I made it easy for the thieves due to my own casual approach to security when on holiday.)

 

[Smiddy]

Hello, Good news of a sort, following my card being stolen in July and being used by
crooks to take 600 euro out of my BBV Bank in PP using ATM machines. I have now been refunded my money by CPP who are a insurance company where you can list all cards/passport/driving licence numbers. The Bank wrote a letter stating as a PIN number
was used they would not refund me, great help they were.
So I recommend CPP for peace of mind they only charge a small amount per year.
Lets hope they catch these people who ruin holidays.
P.S. I am going to return to PP next year !!

Not wishing to upset you, but how did thieves get a hold of your PIN number?

 

[Major Tom]

I had 2 cards stolen with different PIN numbers and both cards
were used. I can only assume they have a device that reads the
PIN or allows them to change it, so much for chip & pin security !!
I now don't carry credit/debit cards on me only cash so that's the max
I can have stolen. I keep credit cards for emergency locked in the safe
which I have now fitted to my apartment.
Still love PP every time I arrive, hope these people get caught and
sent back to where they came from !!

 

[Mark]

Not wishing to upset you, but how did thieves get a hold of your PIN number?

it was hacked a couple of years ago unfortunately.

BBC - Newsnight: Susan Watts: New flaws in chip and pin system revealed

There is a video on you tube that shows a device in action but I cant find it at the moment.

There are stories of another hack that captures data from machines in shops and restaurants so the criminals dont even need the card as the data is extracted from the chip and pin machine.
Because the pin was used to verify a transaction the banks say it was the customers fault....

Chip & PIN terminals too easy to hack, says security expert | CNET UK

Cash for me in shops and restaurants, home or on holiday.

 

[Major Tom]

I agree when in PP only carry cash,that way you know what you may
have stolen from you.Put credit cards in a safe and use for emergency
or expensive purchases.

 

[Sparky]

Nine members of the gang of pickpockets Romanians are delivered in court in Palma.
The police investigation and the car also find that the organization continued to adopt measures against surveillance, is divided into small groups, with perfectly defined roles, and try to choose foreign national victims, usually while intoxicated and occasionally residents on the island, with In order to ensure impunity.
In fact, one of the most significant aspects is the reference made by the judge about the irreparable damage to tourism exercised band. "This continued criminal activity, which has continued over time for several years, not only affects the direct victims of criminal acts, it causes irreparable damage to the image of the island and by extension the country also causing the citizenry an undesirable sense of impunity, who take advantage of loopholes favoring legislation guarantees, unable to stop these criminal phenomena, "the judge concluded.

Read the full story here :- Nueve integrantes de la banda de carteristas rumanos se entregan en el juzgado de Palma » Noticias » Sucesos » Ultima Hora Mallorca

 

[cat Scotland]

Safety in PP

I was on holiday in PP at the beginning of October. During a stroll back from the Ill A Dor Hotel two women approached myself and Husband. The older woman put something on my chest as she came along side of me. I took it off it was a sprig of Rosemary. I tried to hand it back and said no thank you, but she wouldn't take it. I threw it away and she started to shout at me in Spanish, then slapped my arm as I walked on. Needless to say I was quite taken aback. I have been visiting PP for the last 10 years and have never had any trouble.

 

[sws97sdg]

Oh dear, never heard of that there before, we have it here and we saw it in Florence, its usually a cover for pickpocketing so luckily they didn't try that on you by the sounds of it, I can imagine how that would shake you up! Glad it hasn't put you off going back though!