On-car tech catches thief
A stolen Vauxhall has been reunited with its owner thanks to Vauxhall OnStar, the personal connectivity and service assistant that includes stolen vehicle assistance.
Having parked up outside his workplace in central Glasgow, James Watson was forced out of his vehicle by a thief, who stole his new Vauxhall Astra. When reporting the incident to the police, James pointed out that the vehicle was equipped with Vauxhall OnStar, meaning it had a GPS locator that would help recover the vehicle.
Working directly with the OnStar team, the police found the car at a petrol station four miles away and apprehended the offender. OnStar’s stolen vehicle assistance feature also allowed the operator to remotely deactivate the ignition when the thief turned off the engine, giving the police the opportunity to recover the vehicle undamaged.
‘It was a terrible experience, one I wouldn’t wish on anybody else,’ said James Watson. ‘After the initial shock of what happened subsided, I realised that we could locate the car – and probably the offender – through OnStar. I’m really grateful that the technology was in place to recover the vehicle so quickly, helping me to get back on the road knowing the thief had been caught.’
Following the recovery of the vehicle assisted by Vauxhall OnStar, the offender was sentenced to 10 months, 15 days in jail and disqualified from driving for nine months.
