Stroller Thievery

[magicmom1]

I am one of the unlucky ones who had not only one but two strollers "stolen" together. I had them tied together and everything. We have been to WDW over 100 times with no problem but last August came out of Philharmagic to find them GONE! Not moved around, believe me I wish it would have been that simple, but just gone. They were the cheapest Wal-Mart strollers you could find so I was not having chest pains that my McClaren double was stollen but was still just the same.

We wound up buying the Kolcraft strollers that WDW now sells in most gift shops and as of 3 weeks ago they were priced at $45 a piece. If you figure how much you would spend renting one for the week it is definitely cheaper to buy one of theirs. You still have to "trick" it out because everyone who had the idea of renting is now buying so now the lots are a sea of black and red strollers.

Good luck and have fun decorating your kids new ride!

 

[GenerationX]

Since you will be leaving your stroller unattended for long periods of time in a very public place, follow one basic rule:

Don't leave anything in the stroller that will ruin your day if stolen. I would add the stroller itself to that rule.

 

[NOLADisneyFan]

At Thanksgiving we will be taking our baby daughter for her first trip. She will be nine months old.

We are bringing an umbrella stroller that my wife bought. I do not recall the price. That being said, I have heard of people putting a padlock through the spokes (if it has them) on one of the front wheels and around one of the bars of the stroller.

That way, if a CM has to move it, he or she can simply tilt it back and roll it, but a thief would have no reason to take it, as it would be such a pain to use, that they would go to another stroller.

Has anyone ever done this? Any thoughts about it?

Thanks,

Johnny

 

[danpam1024]

While I understand I'm leaving myself open to those who feel more responsible than I, why really worry about this?

The chances of a stroller being stolen appears to be mathematically improbable. 1,000s of strollers are left outside rides every day and thievery seems to be practically non-existent. Just use common sense and don't leave valuables on the top tray and overwhelmingly, the odds are in your favor that you'll be fine.

Enjoy your vacation. R-E-L-A-X.....:animwink::animwink::animwink:

 

[SnowWhiteMomma]

We had purchased a MacLaren lightweight a couple years ago. It was great but it had a few drawbacks. The basket was very small .

The mcLauren basket is very inusable. We have a Peg Perego as well as a Chicco, both are full size. The Peg is aluminum and very light. This stroller's basket is small to. The Chicco has a large basket. Luckilly, (not so much)the airline kinda mangled it on out trip to DC. I has a large basket. I will be using this one because, I really don't care about it in the condition it is in now.

 

[pixel-dust]

back in our stroller days-we put a simple bike chain with a lock on one of the wheels.

Also, the faux bio hazard diaper trick is a great decoy.

Don't leave crayons on the seat! They melt like butter.

 

[mickeymatt]

We have had an unopened bottle of water stolen out of our rented stroller before. The stroller was reparked by a CM while we were in Snow White, so i don't know if the CM dropped it or threw it away because it was from outside the park. Anyway, call me paranoid, but I pack everything in a backpack that stays with me at all times. I rent a stroller because they can be replaced anytime anywhere.
Good Luck,
Matt

 

[disneydiva72]

I have done the bike chain trick on my baby jogger because they are expensive but I only did that at the Bronx Zoo, where Stroller thievery is like car jacking.

 

[figmentmom]

Oh, thats a good idea! Its easy to spot when the CM push them all together like a train wreck.

This will be my fourth stint as a seasonal Cast Member in Fantasyland this July, so I speak from long experience in moving strollers around. :ROFLOL: We move them simply because if we didn't, stroller parking would be absolute gridlock! Having strollers in rows makes it far easier for guests to put their child back in the stroller, wheel the stroller out of the stroller parking area, and get on with their day. Trying to identify and then move a stroller abandoned in the center of a tangled heap of other strollers makes for a less-than-magical day, so we do our best to avoid that.

Since you will be leaving your stroller unattended for long periods of time in a very public place, follow one basic rule:

Don't leave anything in the stroller that will ruin your day if stolen. I would add the stroller itself to that rule.

Exactly.

 

[Javier Boughton]

we purchase a jeep 2 seat stroller for our son and daughter..

this stroller comes with a type of mini umbrellas, one for each seat.

as you can see on our first day..the umbrellas look great kind of a inverted U.

we went to AK and i dont remember if it was in the lion king show or the its tough to be a bug show..and someone changed them!!!

that was our only logical explanation...we always left the stroller in the shadow..and we did in fact saw a lot of the same strollers.

it kinda sucks...i mean, they didnt steal my wifes baby bag or our disney shopping...but exchange the umbrellas?

cmon!

 

[MAGICFLOP]

we purchase a jeep 2 seat stroller for our son and daughter..

this stroller comes with a type of mini umbrellas, one for each seat.

as you can see on our first day..the umbrellas look great kind of a inverted U.

we went to AK and i dont remember if it was in the lion king show or the its tough to be a bug show..and someone changed them!!!

that was our only logical explanation...we always left the stroller in the shadow..and we did in fact saw a lot of the same strollers.

it kinda sucks...i mean, they didnt steal my wifes baby bag or our disney shopping...but exchange the umbrellas?

cmon!

Did they swap the whole stroller?
I would'nt think that someone would spend that much time taking it apart and putting it together again.......

 

[figmentmom]

Did they swap the whole stroller?
I would'nt think that someone would spend that much time taking it apart and putting it together again.......

That's what I wondered...maybe someone removed your bags, nabbed your stroller, and disappeared.

 

[ELopez]

Still, that is very bizarre.

 

[luckyeye13]

So, ironically enough, I was on stroller parking duty the last two days while waiting to get officially trained...The one thing I'd like to say is PLEASE don't leave your electronics and other personal belongings on the stroller!

Yesterday alone I saw 3 cell phones and 5 digital cameras left right in the open in the stroller parking section. I ended up keeping an eye on things because it made me nervous, but the CMs in the area are NOT in charge of watching your valuables.

I spoke with a very nice woman who had had over $200 in cash stolen from her stroller the previous day. It's absolutely heartbreaking that people would steal in the Most Magical Place on Earth, but it does happen.

I'd imagine that a stroller loaded with bags, especially with valuables in view, would be much more likely to get stolen than a mostly empty stroller with maybe a few essentials (diapers, bottles, etc.)

Ah, yes, the fun memories of seeing all those valuables left on the strollers. That was almost as fun as the strollers being so filled with junk that they would tip over at the slightest touch. (Kind of makes you wonder if the stroller is meant to transport a child or to be used as a shopping cart.) And the best part of it all was that some Guests actually expected the Cast Members to keep an eye on all of their belongings. Whenever a Guest would ask me if they can leave their expensive and valuable belongings in the stroller because we will probably be watching all of them, I always responded by telling them that it is recommended that they take their belongings with them and that we are unable to keep a constant watch over everything.

 

[SAV]

There are several threads in the Disney with Kids forum with Stroller advice and tips, so I would take a look in there.

One of our first trips with my Daughter we brought a cheap umbrella stroller with and because it was so darn hot, the wheels actually got so hot that they pulled away from the rims when I made a turn. I tried to fix it up at the hotel, but it didn't really work. I just junked it and we dealt with not having one for the rest of the day. For the next year I got this one from babies R us: http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2671817

It has lasted us many years and we are bringing it again on Wednesday. There are ALOT of these strollers at the parks so definitely do something to set yours apart. I have tied bunches of multi colored yarn on mine. I am also going to tie those Disney paint samples from Home Depot onto it.

 

[figmentmom]

Ah, yes, the fun memories of seeing all those valuables left on the strollers. That was almost as fun as the strollers being so filled with junk that they would tip over at the slightest touch. (Kind of makes you wonder if the stroller is meant to transport a child or to be used as a shopping cart.) And the best part of it all was that some Guests actually expected the Cast Members to keep an eye on all of their belongings. Whenever a Guest would ask me if they can leave their expensive and valuable belongings in the stroller because we will probably be watching all of them, I always responded by telling them that it is recommended that they take their belongings with them and that we are unable to keep a constant watch over everything.

Hee hee - I can beat that! I had a guest ask me last summer if I would mind watching her infant in the stroller while the rest of the family went on Small World. (Uh, no thank you, Ma'am. :ROFLOL