Hundreds of people across the country this year have returned to their cars following a five-minute grocery run, a movie date with their spouse, a holiday shopping trip or a short business trip to find their car broken into and vandalized. The experience of a break-in is violating on its own, however the horror continues for many victims when they realize their garage door opener remote has also been stolen, giving thieves ready access to their home and loved ones. Many homeowners are unsure what to do in this situation. What do I do when my garage door opener remote has been stolen? How do I clear a stolen garage door opener remote? Should I buy a new garage door opener? Can I just reprogram the opener and buy a new remote? How can I prevent my garage door opener remote from being taken again? Genie is committed to helping customers answer these questions and more to restore peace of mind quickly and painlessly.
A missing or stolen garage door opener remote can spell disaster for many families. Maybe your son lost it when he and his friends took your car to the lake last weekend or maybe your wife just stuck it in her purse thinking it was her smartphone, but just maybe your remote has met a more sinister fate – falling into the hands of a less-than-reputable individual with ill intentions. For most of us, our garage door openers are a modern convenience that can help make our lives easier, but thieves can use them as tools to break into our garages and our homes. Seasoned ne’er-do-wells often will peruse parking lots, searching for cars that have garage door opener remotes hanging from their visors or laying in the console. Other thieves can patrol neighborhoods, looking for unlocked cars parked in driveways, often with garage door opener remotes clipped to the visor. By stealing the remote, the thief can wait until you and your family have left before he opens your garage and begins a limitless shopping spree through your personal belongings.
What steps can you take to protect your home from thieves with garage door opener remotes?
First and foremost, you can prevent them from stealing your remote. Breaking into a vehicle can sometimes be as simple as reaching through an open window or opening an unlocked door because you “were just going to be a minute”. Treat your garage door opener remote like your cell phone, carry it with you when you leave the vehicle. Do not leave it in your car during the day at work and never leave it in your vehicle overnight – at home or on the road. If you do leave it in your car, tuck it under a seat, lock it in the glove box, or stash it in another inconspicuous compartment to make it less likely that would-be thieves will target your vehicle. Most modern garage door opener remotes are only the size of your cars key fob so it is easy to just clip it to your keyring and always have it with you.
If you notice that your remote is missing, clear the codes on your garage door opener immediately. Clearing the remotes from your garage door opener is simple and can be cheap insurance until you can locate your remote or find a replacement garage door opener remote. Each brand of garage door opener has a slightly different process for clearing the remotes. This will go through them one by one.
CLEARING THE MISSING REMOTE
To clear the remotes from your Genie garage door opener first locate the learn / program button
Press and hold the square “Learn” or “PRGM” button for 6 seconds. The LED light will flash. Then hold the up and down arrows together for 6 seconds. This clears the missing remote and it will no longer have access to open your garage door. Follow this link to reprogramming the remotes and keypad that are still available. This process takes less than a minute to complete.
If you have a Chamberlain®, Craftsman®, Liftmaster®, Ryobi®, and most other brands of garage door opener you can clear the remotes with one step. You simply press and hold the colored learn button for six to 10 seconds. Once you release all remotes are cleared.
Genie Intellicode Security for the Garage
Genie garage door openers utilize Intellicode, which is the latest in garage door opener security designed for modern households. The Intellicode System helps keep your garage door opener safe by implementing rolling-code technology which offers significant advantages over conventional garage door openers that use fixed codes. An old-style opener remote transmits the same, fixed security code each time the remote button is pressed. Because the number of available fixed codes is limited, a conventional garage-door system can be breached by hackers looking for easy access to your belongings or by thieves with a stolen garage door opener remote. You can upgrade nearly any fixed code garage door opener, from any manufacturer (as long as the unit has required safety beams), with the Genie Dual Frequency Conversion Kit. This upgrades your remotes to the most modern Genie garage door opener remotes and secures their signals with Genie Intellicode Rolling Code Technology.
Genie Intellicode is different. Every time your garage-door system is activated, our proprietary Intellicode system selects a new code from billions of possible combinations. This virtually eliminates the possibility of hacking, and it helps prevent unauthorized entry into your home through the garage. All Genie remotes and openers are compatible with Intellicode technology, ensuring that no matter what opener you purchase today, your garage is protected.
Get rid of the remote completely and move to a smart garage door opener. Genie Aladdin Connect uses your already secure home network to provide information to, from, and about your garage door opener. The Genie Aladdin Connect is compatible with both iOS and Android devices, providing remote access control with easy installation and setup. You can monitor the door position (open or closed) and any change to the position whether it's done through the Aladdin Connect app or manually. Learn more about the Genie Aladdin Connect system and its benefits here.
Garage door opener remotes are extremely useful when used only for their designed purpose, however thieves and intruders can use stolen remotes to wreak havoc on unsuspecting families. The best method to ensure your home stays secure and protected is to not lose your garage door opener remote, however in the event that yours is lost or stolen, Genie does have the best option available, the Universal Series Garage Door Opener Remote, that is compact in size with four programmable buttons. No matter what brand of garage door opener or gate opener you have the Genie Universal Series Garage Door Opener Remote is the correct choice. This remote can be programmed to nearly any type of garage door opener and can even be configured to open gates. Learn more about Genie’s universal garage door opener remote here.
2 comments
@Gerald,
Not likely since this unit works on rolling code technology. The issue you are experiencing could be the result of a stuck button on a remote, if the unit is closing too far and reversing back open, if there is a short in wiring. We would like to provide you more assistance, please reach out to us at 1-800-354-3643.
I have a Genie garage door opener model 4062. There have been reports of garage doors being opened and garages vandalized in in mt neighborhood. The other night about 2 AM my son-in-law was outside on the porch when my garage door opened. He didn’t see anyone around. One day later my garage door was open when I woke up and went out to get the paper. I know that the scan code constantly changes and don’t need that lecture. I would like to know if there is any possibility of someone using some sort of scanner to open garage doors? All my openers are accounted for. my plan going forward is to turn off power to the door at night. what is your suggestion. I’m not interested in the wi-fi option.