Do you leave a key on board?

Used to leave a set but we have had two different times when several boats on our dock were broken into. No more...
 
"Safe" is relative. Our boat is in a historically no-crime marina and we leave the boat unlocked. My thinking is that somebody breaking in would do more damage (destroying unique cabin door) than the value of what is on the boat. I'd be crushed if my Steiner's were stolen, but other than that, the value we leave on the boat is a couple hundred bucks of booze, and a handheld.

Obviously, if peeps break in just to trash it, then all bets are off.

So where exactly are the Steiners stored?
 
Good point, the post was mainly just food for thought, not expecting skippers to reply in the affirmative with specifics. We tend to get lulled into a false sense of security with our habits of convenience. I rarely lock our cars or house even when gone for the weekend. I imagine one day that may bite me in the A==!
Carpe Diem
Again, not a good thing to post on a public forum. Hope it never gets to biting you. Don't push your luck
 
We had this lock-box installed when we first got our boat: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F2S2GT...olid=2COIRSJJCQ682&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

This way I can give our lock-box code to any vendor who comes to service the boat. We also use an Arlo camera in the cockpit and in the salon and in fact, we caught a thief on our boat last March and thanks to the Arlo camera he was caught. Regarding the key - he didn't need it. Like a dummy I had left a bag of tools in the cockpit and he used a screwdriver and a hammer and broke in. So if you're looking for safety, get a security camera with a wifi or hotspot connection - it worked for us!
 

I have one on my boat, in addition to a wifi camera. Great peace of mind. Its also nice to fire up the HVAC before leaving home.

To the subject at hand: My marina has a lockbox inside the marina office. Leaving a spare set of keys there allows you to gain access should you leave your keys at home. In addition, should an emergency arise, the marina personnel can get into the cabin. I would imagine, many marinas offer this service.
 
We hide an extra when we use the boat. Once when wading to shore from the boat the boat keys on a floaty came right out of my pocket. Thankfully i realized it about 5 minutes later and went back to the water and another boater had found them floating by. Could have been a bad day.
 
We don't lock the boat. Other than the TV's there is nothing of real value on board. I don't recall any reports of theft at my marina in the 6 years we have been there. The docks all have locked gates.
 
I have cameras on the boat. If someone decides to go in I’ll be happy to send the police to say hello to them

Send the police to say hello? I guess it depends on where you live. Your cops must have a lot of free time... cops around here can't even respond to all of the 911 calls, so you can forget about "sending" them anywhere for a boat B&E.

In the city, I see lots of people with cameras who think they will prevent crime. They don't. I've never seen a video clip where someone looked around, spotted a camera, and moved on. People breaking and entering don't even look for cameras or care that any might be there. If they want in, they are coming in anyway. Cameras don't stop them. Yes, camera *do* provide you some evidence to share with the police. But if the police don't recognize the people in the video, the video is worthless. Around here, police rarely track down B&E criminals in houses. Boats? Forget about it.

Sorry for the speech, but I see this naivety a lot. Cameras don't prevent a thing. Yes, they may be able to help you ID someone later, if you're lucky enough to recognize them. But even then, a ski mask and/or a can of spray paint (or a paper bag) will render a camera useless.

Disclaimer: I have them on my house, too. For the same reason: evidence. Not prevention.
 
Send the police to say hello? I guess it depends on where you live. Your cops must have a lot of free time... cops around here can't even respond to all of the 911 calls, so you can forget about "sending" them anywhere for a boat B&E.

In the city, I see lots of people with cameras who think they will prevent crime. They don't. I've never seen a video clip where someone looked around, spotted a camera, and moved on. People breaking and entering don't even look for cameras or care that any might be there. If they want in, they are coming in anyway. Cameras don't stop them. Yes, camera *do* provide you some evidence to share with the police. But if the police don't recognize the people in the video, the video is worthless. Around here, police rarely track down B&E criminals in houses. Boats? Forget about it.

Sorry for the speech, but I see this naivety a lot. Cameras don't prevent a thing. Yes, they may be able to help you ID someone later, if you're lucky enough to recognize them. But even then, a ski mask and/or a can of spray paint (or a paper bag) will render a camera useless.

Disclaimer: I have them on my house, too. For the same reason: evidence. Not prevention.

When our boat was broken into earlier this year, these are the images that were captured by our Arlo cameras. The images were good enough to identify the suspect and he is now being prosecuted. On our next boat we will be using Arlo cameras and a wifi hotspot again.


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Glad they caught the dirtbag
 
"Safe" is relative. Our boat is in a historically no-crime marina and we leave the boat unlocked. My thinking is that somebody breaking in would do more damage (destroying unique cabin door) than the value of what is on the boat. I'd be crushed if my Steiner's were stolen, but other than that, the value we leave on the boat is a couple hundred bucks of booze, and a handheld.

Obviously, if peeps break in just to trash it, then all bets are off.
I had the same philosophy for years. Not concerned as much for the personal belongings, all replaceable. The violation of my space would be the hardest to deal with and I would never even think about the boat being stripped of the cabin furnishings. Searay used some very expensive custom furnishings that it turns out are not readily available now. I guess all you can do is be reasonably diligent and hope for the best.
Carpe Diem
 
Good stuff with the cameras. I would like to circle back to the locking of the cabin door with a question for the group. On my 380DA, it looks like I could take a screw driver or something along those lines and defeat the lock. The key to the door reminds me of my old lawn mower key. We have good wine & other beverages down below with upgraded stereo gear and would hate to see them depart. I just don't think the lock on the door would stop a real thief. What are your thoughts on the integrity of the locks used?

Vince
 
Vince, in my many years as a cop I found there are darn few locks that will stop a determined thief. If he really wants to get past a lock and into your boat, he'll do it. That's what we carry insurance on things we own.

The main idea behind locks is to make your boat/truck/car/house a hard target so the thief will hit the one next to you that doesn't have things locked up. It's called "target hardening".
 
Good stuff with the cameras. I would like to circle back to the locking of the cabin door with a question for the group. On my 380DA, it looks like I could take a screw driver or something along those lines and defeat the lock. The key to the door reminds me of my old lawn mower key. We have good wine & other beverages down below with upgraded stereo gear and would hate to see them depart. I just don't think the lock on the door would stop a real thief. What are your thoughts on the integrity of the locks used?

Vince

Easily defeatable, but with damage to the door itself. Some that I know don’t lock their cabin because they feel the locks are so easily broken and they don’t want to risk the damage to the door/boat.
They’d rather let the thief’s get in and walk away with some items in the cabin.
My feelings are that I’d rather keep the cabin door locked to eliminate kids looking to hang out and drink my booze or go through my stuff, and let the insurance company worry about having the cabin door fixed if someone more determined breaks in.
 

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