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Top Five Tips To Prevent Thefts From Vans

Wednesday, 10 May 2017

WITH a van being broken into every 23 minutes Arval has put together some guidance for fleet operators on how to protect their vehicles from thefts from vans.

According to new figures by the BBC, 30 police forces report thefts from vans have increased from 14,063 in 2014/15 to 22,749 in 2016/17.

While Arval acknowledges that there isn’t a single perfect solution to avoid being the victim of crime, the leading vehicle leasing company has created five tips to van security to help customers mitigate the risk of thefts from vans:

Simon Cook, LCV manager at Arval, explained: “These figures are consistent with what we are hearing from fleets at the moment. In our experience, van crime tends to occur in cycles and our feeling is that we are on an upswing.

“What tends to happen is that thieves devise a new method of breaking into a van, operators adopt ways of preventing it, and there follows a decrease in the crime. Then, new techniques start to appear, and the whole thing happens again.”

Simon said that current methods of theft involved using tools to break through the structure of the vehicle or obtaining commercially available transponder keys to open vans.

“Manufacturers are trying to increase payload and one method is to reduce the weight of the van by using lighter steel. Unfortunately, this means it is easier to use tools to cut through the fabric of the van or to bend door frames.

“Also, manufacturers have done much to reduce the effectiveness of transponder keys on newer models, however, they are still affecting some vehicles that currently remain on fleets.”

The five-point guide to van security:

There are a range of options available with popular solutions including slam locks and trackers. Look at which will be the best way to protect your van and make it difficult, noisy, or time consuming for thieves to get in

Modern locking systems make it comparatively difficult to break into many vans through the locks, so thieves often target the keys. Ensure that drivers keep them secure and out of sight at all times.

A heavily liveried van is a good advertisement for your business – but also an indication of what is inside as criminals can target certain industries or even companies. If you are being targeted by thieves, adopting plain, white vans might be a good move. Major fleets have certainly done this in the past.

If your van is being left for a long period of time, especially overnight, make sure that is parked close to an occupied building or in a conspicuous location.

Making your van fleet more secure can be an expensive business. You can easily add up to £1,000 to the cost of a van in locks and other items. Make sure that you are getting professional advice that enables you to fit the right equipment to the right vans operating in the right areas.

Simon continued: “We work very closely with businesses to examine the kind of crime that is affecting their fleet and come up with the best solutions. This can range from knowing which kind of locks work best on a particular model of van to interrogating insurance statistics to identify which of your vehicles are operating in high-risk, high-crime areas.”

“Unfortunately there is no one-size-fits-all solution, but there are certainly several steps that businesses can take to mitigate the risk of falling victim to van crime.”

 

Source: http://www.businessvans.co.uk/

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