A few years ago I stopped behind some cars at red lights in Tower Hamlets and suddenly a very large guy started trying to open my car door and, realising it was locked, he then screamed and tried to break my window to get at me. I was absolutely terrified! The only thing I could think to do was to hit the alarm lights on my car, hit the horn and gun it across the junction, running the red lights. It worked. But I was so shaken I was in tears all the way back to Devon that night.
A few weeks later I was in London again for a meeting at Wellington House. I parked in the nearby parking lot and went to the back of my car to take out my briefcase. I put it on the ground beside me as I went to lock the car and was suddenly bumped by a guy who reached down and ran off with my briefcase. Luckily, that car parking attendant was watching and very quick on his feet and I got my case back within a short time. But I was quite shaken by it all.
There were other instances but those were in my childhood.
Somehow we learn to get through these things but they do teach us to be on guard all of the time when out and about.
I did have a near-break in at my flat once many years ago. Some Turkish gypsy kids tried to break the lock on my door to open it. Little did they know that on the other side of the door was a beautiful, but very very large Irish Wolfhound sitting calmly wondering just what they were up to. As they opened the door, he stuck his nose through the opening and let out one very loud WOOOOF!!!! - It scared the living daylights out of them, so much so that they quickly slammed the door shut again - unfortunately so hard that I had to get the police to help me open it as the lock had now jammed. A neighbour had watched it all happening from her window and the story went around the area for ages. From that day on, every time I went into the nearby butchers he gave my Wolfhound a big sausage as a treat.