France issues warning about pickpockets during Tour de France

The Tour de France is a big draw for tourists and travelers of all kinds. Unfortunately, this also means it is a draw for pickpockets. We’ve seen the big numbers of pickpockets that come out with international sporting events in the past, like the 2012 Olympics in London where 1,700 people were pickpocketed every day in the run-up to the Olympics. Every year in Paris alone some 2,000 Americans report their passports lost or stolen, most often due to pickpocketing. When you look at France as a whole (and not just American travelers), there are 797,217 thefts (pickpockets and muggings) in a year.

So, what do the French police advise spectors of the Tour de France and travelers in general to do in order to stay safe? The Essex Watch Liaison Officer, Colin Freeman, advises tourists to “keep valuables in zipped interior pockets of jackets and coats rather than the back pockets of jeans or trousers.” Did you hear that? Monsieur Freeman knows that pickpockets can’t get into those interior pockets, and I’m sure that if he knew about the Clever Travel Companion underwear and shirts with hidden, zippered pockets he would be endorsing them for theft prevention all day long!