Pay and display crime reduction advice in council car parks

IMPORTANT crime reduction and road safety advice will be just the ticket for Christmas shoppers in West Somerset.
Police have linked up with West Somerset Council and the Somerset West Crime Prevention Panel to put crime reduction and road safety messages on car parking tickets across the district.
People will be reminded not to leave their vehicles vulnerable to opportunist thieves after using any of the council’s parking ticket machines.
Minehead crime reduction officer, PC Charlie Fitzpatrick, said: “The tickets will remind people to keep valuables out of view and keep their homes secure.
“There will also be messages encouraging people to report suspicious activity and stick to speed limits so that highways are safer for all road users.
“Although crime in West Somerset remains low, we are committed to making our communities safer by using messages like this.
“The tickets will have four messages and will be around for the next year.
“Anything we can do to reduce crime and promote the positive actions of residents can only assist in keeping West Somerset one of the safest places to live.”
Council community safety officer Peter Hughes said: “We are happy to support initiatives such as these because it is easy to forget the simple measures that can protect your vehicle when you are caught up in the excitement of seasonal shopping.
“The fact that the messages will be displayed beyond Christmas is great because they will be positive reminders to people to remain vigilant.”
Council parking services manager Mike Lewis said: “The council has been happy to help provide people with a reminder to look after their belongings and to keep their vehicles as safe as possible.
“We are comparatively lucky because we do not experience a lot of problems, but prevention is better than cure.
“We hope this will help people remember some very sound advice from our local police.”
Crime prevention panel chairman John Lees said: “We are delighted to support this initiative. We hope that the timely reminder will help deter potential crime which can only be good news for our community.”