Live News From Spain As It Happens

dave ellis said:
Saturday, August 17, 2013 @ 3:06 PM

in june this year i drove from quesada to santandar on ap7 yes i did have cars flash me but i never had any other problems the best thing is dont stop and ignor others and only stop in a safe place

Stewart barker said:
Saturday, August 17, 2013 @ 4:19 PM

At Xmas left Santander on trip to Mojacar in almeria a trip we have done many times. At the first services stopped for decent coffee. Unknown to us someone
Put penknife in rear tyre and broke it off, tyre lasted for about 20kilometers then blew out, a car had been on our tail so I immediately phoned police and said to occupants (who had offered help) that I was talking to them. I am 6' 4" and 17 stone ex boxer. So they left. The man from recovery company said it was becoming very frequent daily in fact. I have to say the garage and hotel were really helpfully saying that it was likely not Spanish but other nationality.
A similar thing happened a couple of trips ago. Don't be put off but be extra vigilant and keep your eyes open examine car before leaving any services.
Vive la Spain
Stewart

Timresult said:
Saturday, August 17, 2013 @ 4:41 PM

If the police know these attacks take place, why dont they do something about it, eg set up a decoy vehicle with police officers disguised as Brit tourists.

Could it be, that might just be seen as defending our interests for a change?

Rob said:
Sunday, August 18, 2013 @ 8:41 AM

Spain like the UK is a magnet for the dross of Europe. Spain now has an additional problem with South Americans, I mention Mulla which has seen a large increase in drug providers. They have taken on the now un sellable which used to be bought by the British.

Ruth Clark said:
Monday, August 19, 2013 @ 6:23 AM

Whenever we hire a car at alicante, I always remove the hire car sticker and place it inside the boot of the car, so people like that do not realise that it's a hired care. When taking the car back to the airport i park the car stick back the sticker in its original place then return the keys.

Laycock said:
Friday, June 27, 2014 @ 4:52 PM

26.06.2014. This morning drove down to Barcelona from France and stopped at the last service station before Barcelona , and just after the last Toll on the AP7. We stopped for a coffee break and when we went back to the car a person in a car parked next to us said that our rear right hand tyre was punctured. It seemed alright to us so we drove off after another driver a few metres away mentioned to be careful as there are car robberies taking place in this area sometimes. We drove along the ap7 towards Barcelona when a message in our car said to check the tyre pressure. We very quickly became suspicious and the same driver that unknown to us was following us suddenly overtook us and was flashing his lights and making frantic signs to pull over. We became very frightened and kept on driving and headed to the nearest exit. The car followed us. We made signs to him that we were not going to stop and made sure he saw us making a telephone call. He then drove off. Shortly after, we stopped and called for assistance. Our tyre was completely flat by this time. We discovered it had been stabbed 3 times. We also learnt that we were about to be robbed and that is how they target tourist cars. We were very lucky but were left with a lot of frustration and an expensive bill from the local Mercedes garage. We have been driving down this motorway for many years and this is the first time we have experience this situation. We tend to stop in Toll areas which are safer. Our advise is to NEVER STOP IN SERVICE AREAS OUTSIDE TOLL ROADS AND IF YOU HAVE TO, THEN REMAIN BY YOUR CAR. IF YOU DISCOVER YOU HAVE A PUNCTURE AFTER HAVING STOPPED AT A SERVICE AREA DO NOT STOP IF A CAR THAT IS FOLLOWING YOU IS SIGNING YOU TO STOP. CONTINUE UNTIL YOU GET TO A PETROL STATION OR SEE A POLICE CAR. DIAL 112 EMERGENCY SERVICES.
-- Sophie L Jun 26, 2014 5:23 PM