Your purse or pocketbook could be in danger while shopping, especially during high-volume times of the year like the holiday shopping season. But a new viral trend may help you stay protected.
The trend: Shoppers across the country are strapping their purses to child safety locks on their shopping carts to protect their bags from thieves, according to reports.
- Shoppers will take the child seat belt straps and wrap it around the purse handles. Snap it close and it will be protected.
- Shoppers with kids, or those who shop without straps, can use a carabiner clip to lock their purse to the cart
Saw a lady with her purse strapped to her shopping cart with the child safety belt today. Why has this never occurred to me?
— Adult-In-Training (@Yoshishuman) April 7, 2019
An elderly lady just took my grocery cart, strapped her purse into it like a baby, and stared at me as though daring me to try to take it back.
— Annette Christie (@MsAnnetteMC) March 11, 2019
I laughed and let her take it.
Police: The police department in Windham, New Hampshire, championed this move in a Facebook post from two years ago.
A holiday shopping safety tip for women. When using a shopping cart as you browse through the store, keep your purse zipped or closed and secure it to the cart by clipping the child safety belt through the strap(s). This will help in preventing someone from taking advantage of your distraction and running off with the purse. For those carts that don’t have the child strap, keep an inexpensive carabiner clip attached to your purse strap. Simply clip the carabiner to the cart and your purse is more secure. HAPPY SHOPPING!
Other ideas: Officer Sofia Rosales-Scatena of the Fort Wayne Police Department in Indiana suggested it’s better to keep your purse strapped to your body, according to WPTA-21.
- Rosales-Scatena: “You should have a strap, it should be on your shoulder or have a cross body. I realize a lot of women, myself included do like to put it into the cart, but it’s really easy to have it taken, especially when you look away.”
- Rosales-Scatena: “They will go up to someone, distract them for a moment, while else reaches and grabs the wallet or takes the whole purse. So we just caution people to use common sense, keep the purse on you if you can.”