Why Parking Lots are Targeted For Crime

Previous studies have indicated that one-third of the crimes committed in the US take place in parking lots, but why is this?

As property owners and managers, you hold a duty of care to those utilizing your parking lot to protect them and their property.

By not doing so, you face risks of poor business reputation, financial difficulties, and legal repercussions, all of which create short and long-term damage.

Having supported multiple businesses across various industries with parking lot security, we understand that to protect your parking lot you need to be aware of why they are targeted in order to effectively defend against this.

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Why Are Parking Lots Targeted?

Unfortunately, there are various factors that entice criminals to target parking lots and it’s important to remain vigilant of these:

High-Value Property

You may be asking besides vehicles, what high-value property is present within a parking lot? 

High-value goods often present themselves in numerous ways. Whether it's contents within a vehicle, personal property of parking lot users, or car components such as catalytic converters, a parking lot is filled with big-ticket items. 

And with often high numbers of vehicles and visitors present, criminals always have new targets in which they can inflict crime upon.

Unattended Vehicles

Parking lots are designed for vehicles to be left unattended, but having that many unattended vehicles in one location provides an opportunity that criminals will look to take advantage of. 

An unattended vehicle is easier to scope out, target, and commit crimes upon, with minimal risk of those criminals being caught.

Essentially, parking lots provide a low risk, high reward result in most instances. 

Low Overnight Occupancy

After hours, parking lots tend to be less busy and have lowered visibility, increasing the appeal for criminals to target them as there’s an even greater chance of pulling off any illegal activity. 

With crimes such as catalytic converter theft, organized crime gangs will seize the nighttime to remove up to 100 of them at one time and parking lots are the perfect locations to do this.

Learn More About Organized Crime

High Traffic Volume

For some, high traffic volume may appear as a criminal deterrent, however, it can also encourage others to target your parking lot.

With numerous individuals and vehicles entering and exiting your parking lot on a regular basis, criminals can utilize this to their advantage and conceal their identity and crimes through this.

And this only increases if you have no surveillance system in place to monitor the movements within your parking lot. 

Assumed Lack of Surveillance

For many property owners and managers, securing your parking lot is at the top of your priority list and criminals are aware of this, which is why it makes them an even bigger target.

The assumed lack of surveillance present at most parking lots or insufficient coverage means criminals are able to get away with any illegal activity easier.

Whether it is an opportunistic thief or organized crime gang, most will be looking for easy targets where the risk of capture is low, so if your parking lot appears that way then it is likely to become a popular location for crime.

Why Are Parking Crime Rates High?

Most crimes that occur at parking lots are opportunistic. Law Enforcement reports suggest that most theft from vehicles happen because they were left unlocked or because valuable items have been left in plain sight. 

The most commonly stolen items from cars includes: 

• GPS Devices
• Car Radios, Speakers
• Cell phone, iPod, Portable Gaming Systems
• Laptop, Tablet, iPad
• Car Registration
• Third Row Seats
• Rims and Tires 
• License Plate and/or Tabs
• Truck Tailgates 
• Catalytic Converters

With prices of core metals such as copper, platinum, palladium, rhodium, and gold continuing to soar, car components involving these metals are becoming increasingly popular for thieves. 

Parking lots provide the perfect opportunity for these crimes as individuals have access to a high volume of vehicles all within one location.

How Do You Secure a Parking Lot?

The risk profile of parking lot environments highlights the need to have a robust security solution in place.

There are several steps you can take to harden your lots against potential risks, which we have detailed in our Complete Guide to Parking Lot Security - a free download compiled by our security experts.

Combining both small and large measures together is the best form of defense against parking lot crime. 

Some of the smaller measures involve implementing security lighting, limiting blind spots, adding signage and encouraging any users to lock and secure their vehicles correctly. 

However, in all instances you should always utilize larger measures as your main form of defense. These include:

Access Control

For parking lots where access is limited to only those authorized, you should consider implementing access control in some form. 

Types of access control consist of keypads, card readers, security guard units based at any entrances or exits, video intercoms, License Plate Readers and physical barriers.

The best access control for your parking lot will depend on a variety of factors, therefore you should complete an assessment of your site to ensure the best selection is chosen for your parking lot users. 

With some access control, they are able to accurately track and monitor those entering and exiting your parking lot, so that if an incident occurs, there’s a higher chance of identifying those involved following the event.

Security Guards

One of the most popular options, security guards can be utilized at entrances and exits, to patrol your parking lot, or generally monitor your parking lot day-to-night. 

However, with this being one of the most expensive parking lot surveillance solutions, having 24/7/365 coverage of your site will come with a large price tag that may not be suitable for all businesses. 

Also, with risks of human errors due to a lack of concentration or tiredness, security guards may not always capture suspicious behavior or stop crime whilst it’s active.

Perimeter Fencing

Although for some parking lots access needs to remain open, others may suit perimeter fencing as this can work as both a visible criminal deterrent and to restrict access to your parking lot.

Perimeter fencing makes your parking lot a more difficult target and this can be off-putting to those opportunistic criminals as they’ll be looking for low risk, high reward situations. 

However, perimeter fencing is not able to monitor and record threats, therefore if individuals do access your parking lot, there will be no evidence for your business to follow up on and provide Law enforcement with.

Parking Lot Surveillance Cameras

Installing surveillance cameras like our LotGuard PRO Surveillance Trailers, will help keep an eye on your lot 24-hours a day, seven days a week.

With our surveillance system specifically, they act as a visible deterrent to opportunist thieves who will most likely target lots without security systems.

Standing up to 20-ft tall, they create a strong security presence and are backed by remote monitoring services that act as a virtual security guard for your lot that is always awake and always on guard.

LotGuard’s monitoring partners are a team of ex-Law Enforcement and Military Personnel who keep watch on your site using our advanced edge-based video analytics.

Installing the right surveillance camera, backed by virtual monitoring services, can turn even the largest parking lot into a crime-free zone.

LotGuard: Protecting Your Parking Lot From More Than Just Crime

According to the National Safety Council, at least one in five accidents happen in parking lots within the United States.

That totals nearly fifty thousand car crashes in parking lots and garages every year, with more than sixty thousand people being injured in relation to this.

If an accident occurs in your parking lot, our fully-managed surveillance solutions allow you to capture critical video evidence and notify the relevant authorities including Law Enforcement.

The high-quality video footage will be crucial in assisting authorities in determining what occurred, and will also protect your lots from costly hit-and-runs and false insurance claims.

The Role of Surveillance Cameras in Parking Lot Security

The USA's #1 Parking Lot Surveillance System

LotGuard surveillance units are designed to provide parking lot, dealership, and property security. They detect, deter, mitigate, and report criminal activity and provide 24/7 security.

The units feature built-in video analytics capable of detecting loitering and other criminal behavior. When coupled with our live video transmission, it enables remote crime prevention to occur. 

Every system has an HD infrared camera that records crystal clear evidential images even in the lowest lighting conditions, allowing our trained operators to dispatch Law Enforcement promptly when required and capture usable video for review.

The PTZ cameras allow full site coverage, and our units are completely autonomous allowing them to work independently of both mains power and internet.

We can customize the camera profile of our surveillance systems, so it meets the exact requirements of your sites.

This includes IR PTZ cameras, thermal cameras, license plate recognition cameras (LPR), and four-way multi sensor cameras; all capable of delivering live and recorded footage through cellular connectivity.

Interested in boosting your parking lot’s security?

Reach out to our LotGuard team today to learn more