Car being broken into

Never park a car with visible luggage. The thing is you will have no idea if there is a local theft ring targeting the area you park in quite apart from the just general risk. Figure out how to travel with less luggage so if you must stop with luggage in the car, you will at least have it not showing. Always take the valuables with even for a bathroom stop if the car is left e.g. the prescription meds, ID and money, electronics i.e. things it would be difficult to replace during travel. A medium backpack makes this easier to do. And leave nothing showing in the car itself. Most rentals are hatchbacks and even with a cover not really secure.

The best practice is to base and travel from the base for a few days and the move to another base, so you can secure your stuff in your room and drive to towns and abbeys and tombs etc without hav ing to leave stuff in your car.

I am afraid the brutal truth is that nobody on the internet knows if your car will be broken into. But personally there isn’t a place on earth where I would leave anything on display in a vehicle.

For what it’s worth….

It happens everywhere in France. It doesn’t happen to everyone all the time but a car could be burglarized anywhere in France. Just don’t leave anything out on the seats.

Car break-ins are very common, and rental cars, those likely to contain valuables, are very easy to spot. Never leave luggage or anything of value in your unattended car.

There is a lot of street parking in St Emilion if you get there early enough to snag it. That may help keep your car visible. On the other hand on our first visit we had our luggage in the car and parked on a street along a farmers field about a 5 minute walk into town and I never got the vibe that I needed to be concerned.

If your luggage won't all fit into the trunk, then bring less luggage (you can do it even if you think you can't) or rent a car with a bigger trunk.

We rented a Skoda Superbe on a trip to Ireland and it had a h-u-g-e trunk. We could have slept back there. Maybe that would work for you.

If you park in a touristic place with luggage visible from the outside of the car, seek out a bookie to see if you can get odds on whether your rental won't be broken into.

Because chances are it will.

Alan -- a researcher parked his car at an isolated trail head and when he got back from his hike all his stuff was gone including alas his data records - or so I read. No one knows if an isolated rural area is a hot spot for theft or not. Usually one is ok. But when traveling this kind of theft has a huge impact on your trip.

Considering I know at least a dozen people who have had cars broken into the United States after they left bags in the backseat or an exposed SUV hatch. I would not consider it any safer in Europe . Never, never, anywhere around the world leave things like that showing

I’ve never had any trouble getting my bags in the trunk in France and I’ve never had a problem with my car being broken into. I do also peel off any bumper stickers that say things like Hertz rent a car on them and so far they haven’t complained.

Exposed bags are always a risk. Bags hidden under a luggage cover (which I've never seen missing in a French rental car, unlike in the US where rental SUVs just never seem to have it), a bit less so. In general in France, the closer to the Mediterranean sea you are, the higher the risk. And rural areas are a higher risk, especially trailheads.
Having non-visible bags in the trunk at the paid parking lots around St Emilion feels low-risk to me.

I’ve never had a vehicle broken into in Europe and frequently stop in small towns and villages between lodging locations. There are precautions you can take to minimize the chances of being broken into.

Leave nothing in sight. Hide any coins, maps, charging cables, bags, food, etc.

Hide anything prior to parking. You don’t want to park then open the trunk/hatchback so any prying eyes or cameras can see you have luggage inside.

Park in an area where people frequently pass by.

Avoid remote parking locations, including some areas of parking garages, where somebody could easily break in and not be noticed.

Back into a parking spot and preferably close enough to a wall or hedge so nobody can get between it and the car to open the trunk/hatchback.

If leaving luggage in the vehicle while sightseeing, take anything you cannot afford to lose, (tablets, passports, medications, cash, etc.) with you.

Another suggestion that came up in an earlier discussion of this topic: Tuy a heavy chain and padlock in Europe and run the chain through the handles of the suitcases in the trunk. That would make it a lot harder for someone to carry off your luggage.

I've only parked with all our luggage one time > we were between our major cities and did a famous hike. The road had cars parked along it for half a mile - I wonder how many of them had luggage in them. I made sure that we had everything in the back/trunk before we got there and we didn't open the back to access anything, so there was nothing to flag that we had stuff there.