Motorhome theft

The owner did not claim on his insuranse  ,paid for  all the damage  himself  with increase in insurance  and repairs  he had to increase his security at home ,  the theft  cost him a lot of money , he had to implement all the security or his insurance renewal  would be  refused ..

North Wales Police issued this statement today....

Warning after motorhome stolen in Abergele
Police are appealing for information after the latest in a spate of a motorhome thefts happened in Abergele. 
The white Fiat Ducato motorhome was taken off the drive at an address in Heol Colwyn during the early 
hours of Wednesday 16th October. Motorhome owners are advised to use highly visible security measures 
after over 30 vehicles have been stolen from across North Wales during the last 16 months. Police report 
says thefts today have occurred overnight with the vehicles being taken without using genuine keys. We 
want to warn owners of Fiat Ducato and Peugeot Boxer motorhomes, which seem to be particularly 
targeted across the North Wales. Police believe that the thieves are using technology widely available 
online to override the manufacturer’s security measures, including the electronic immobiliser. We would 
advise owners to guard against theft by using highly visible security methods such as wheel clamps and 
steering wheel locks. Anyone with information relating to the theft of the motorhome or who may know of 
its whereabouts is asked to contact North Wales Police on 101.
Note
Steering wheel locks should meet the physical security standard of the ‘Sold Secure’ or the Police 
accreditation of ‘Secured by Design.’ Additionally, owners should consider adding aftermarket security locks 
to the doors, and a lock on the On-board Diagnostic Port

If they position a Police car at Holyhead or Menai Bridge they might find them?

PLOUGHLIN wrote:If they position a Police car at Holyhead or Menai Bridge they might find them?

Absolutely. If anyone catching a ferry was made to carry registration documents with them , then how long would it take to check vin number to number plate, seeing as vin number is visible through the windscreen these days.

Is their any point in fitting after market door locks  as the hab  windows can be easily  forced  open ? .

burlingtonboaby wrote:I carn't remember the forum member who mentioned that he used to rotate his drivers seat 180 degrees and fit a large padlock to the underside of the frame stopping the seat being set back in place Into its driving position.
This idea may stall any would be tow rag.
Boaby

We saw that idea on You Tube the other day. Can’t remember who it was. Good idea though.

Nora

I have a battery operated motion sensor alarm just placed in my van. Have placed it on floor at back of van covering whole of interior. Anyone breaking in would set it off before they knew it was there and siren noise is quite loud. Van parked in my driveway and can be heard in house. One with two push button key fob type activators available on Amazon for as little as £11.00. Other types are available. Battery has so far lasted for about 4 months.

I have one of those both in the van and shed. Fine while we're in the house, but if I was a thief I'd watch the house and wait until the occupants had vacated the building.
Al.

Also little battery operated things like that are easy to smash to pieces in seconds and stop the siren (or even shove under a cushion to silence them, which most vans will have).

Not saying it's not worth doing, as it's all about layering levels of security, but I wouldn't rely on something like that to give too much.

Maybe better to get the type that has separate sensor so siren can be kept inside the house.

What more can you do? This was on Facebook, it's not a Motorhome but a Landrover. SafeTpedal lock and Disclok , two of the best anti-theft devices, yet still stolen....

Stolen last night (Friday night) from WV1 Wolverhampton area. It had a SafeTPedal lock and DiskLok on. It now has an Eezi Awn roof tent on the back. There goes my plan for a European holiday... Phew!!! Crime number 20WV/259085C/19 West Midlands Police.

You will never stop the pondlife, BUT, you can slow them down a bit, maybe enough to make 'em scarper.
So far, I did 3 things:

1:    A mickey-mouse wheel-lock.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/2b0og54yqk15qcz/Stop-1.jpg?dl=0

2:    I completely removed the OBD socket, then made up different connectors & its well hidden in the van should it be needed later.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/mwa97dwvspyjqxx/Stop-2.jpg?dl=0

3:     I made a housing that covers the recline-wheel & also locks the seat forward. ( to drive it will be 'interesting' )

https://www.dropbox.com/s/4922jj0t2dkcq3w/Stop-3.jpg?dl=0

Going to make a pedal-box next, over the top or what??

Not over the top in the slightest. We need to protect our pride and joy from the chancers as best we can.

Love the seat lock, ingenious!

So far so good.
Now you need to stop the van being moved or pulled away.

Micky

I am led to believe one of the best things you can do is to fit a rising bollard in the drive where appropriate.

Can only repeat the true story of my nephews 2018 Swift which was fitted with a tracker, wheel lock and clamp and parked under his bedroom window where he was sleeping in Reading. The thieves simply jacked the van up complete with wheel clamp put trolleys under it and wheeled it away to a low loader. The tracker was found thrown in a hedge some miles away and the whole thing was captured on CCTV but neither the van nor the thieves were ever seen again.

How many times have we heard it, you can deter the casual thief but the professional no chance.

Admire what you have done though modelman, great stuff.

When it comes to stealing a motorhome I don't think there is such a thing as a casual thief. Joyriding in a stolen car then torching it, yes. But here has to be a network in place in order to steal a motorhome, much like taking a high end car.
I also admire Modelman's highly visible deterrents, but you have to ask yourself how long will they stand up to a thief armed with a 4 foot breaker bar and croppers who doesn't give a toss about damaging the seat controls/steering wheel/pedals.
Al.

bikeralw wrote: . . . . you have to ask yourself how long will they stand up to a thief armed with a 4 foot breaker bar and croppers who doesn't give a toss about damaging the seat controls/steering wheel/pedals.
Al.

That's the most crucial point of all Al, and it's amazing how many people never appear to consider it, specially those who sell the gadgets with totally unrealistic claims about their efficacy.  

Steering wheel clamps for example. Apart from the Disklok (which is still not much of a deterrent to a "pro") the scrote will just cut out a bit of the steering wheel rim, and put another one on when he sells the van. A five second job with a battery angle grinder, and virtually silent with a big cropper.

Those little locking gadgets for securing the side window latches always make me smile when the enthusiastic demonstrator at the shows gets all excited about them. Yes, they probably do prevent a thief from prodding through the rubber window surround to force open the plastic window catches. But does he really care when he breaks the catches, or damages the window bubble as he simply wrenches it open??
As many have said (and will no doubt continue to repeat!!    ) it's worth a certain amount of effort and expense to deter the opportunist thief . . . and therefore both wise and worth it, full stop! But never imagine that stopping a professional gang will be either easy or cheap.

You are both right,  so what do we do,  nothing,  or maybe even leave it unlocked so they don't damage anything at all,   joking of course.

Anyroadup, just bought & fitted a 'Streetwize' GPS tracker, only 40 or so quid, on line but  I got mine from Halfords for the same price.

Tiny little thing, & the best bit is, NO CONTRACT, just bung in a 99p text only sim, I used one from Giffgaff, call it on your mobile & a few seconds later it texts you back co-ordinates, click on it & the location appears on Google maps, really accurate as well.

So,  so far we have: 
1,  stored on big drive behind locked metal gates.
2,  CCTV
3,  Wheel lock,  
4,  seat lock.
5  Tracker.
6, OBD socket removed, 
7, ( coming ) pedal-box lock
8,  ( coming ) shotgun 

modelman wrote:You are both right,  so what do we do,  nothing,  or maybe even leave it unlocked so they don't damage anything at all,   joking of course.

This is more or less the course of action my son's in-laws took after they were burgled two years ago. Yes, they lock the house when away, but leave any items of value, jewellery etc, in a bedroom drawer.
When they were burgled the thieves took a crowbar to the mountings of their small safe and made off with the whole thing. The contents were valued at less than £500, but it cost more than twice that to repair the damage to the house walls and floor, plus the inconvenience when the builders were in.

You need one of these!! 

Figuring the easiest way to get into the van is through the hab door I'm refining the outline plan in the pic.
 Just need to gauge the amount of slack in the string and fix a solid mounting...

That's brilliant Al!

Don't forget to tell 'er indoors' .

As serious as this thread genuinely is, I can’t stop laughing at the recent posts!!

We all wonder where these stolen vans go. Well a classic split-screen VW camper stolen from Essex only a couple of weeks ago has just been found in Poland. It's been partially stripped but apparently not too bad. Rare spares are often available via eBay from Poland, makes you think.