Caravan broken in to, lock picked?

[gungadin]

Hi all,

We have a 2007 Elddis Odyssey 524 in local storage. We went today to add/remove some stuff from it, the last time we used it was May bank holiday. Anyway I unlocked the caravan as normal to find we had no step which is normally left on the doormat as you enter the van. Confused, i wondered if I'd perhaps forgotten to put it in the van before locking up and it got stolen. Upon entering the van the step was actually in the bathroom at the rear of the van, we never leave it in there.
As we walked around, nothing seemed out of the norm, then we noticed the TVs we had (A 32 and 22 inch), packed on the floor in the cushions for protection during travelling were missing. As we looked around we found a pair of Beats headphones were also missing.

So we looked all around the van, no signs of forced entry, so the only conclusion we can gather is that either:

A. I screwed up and left the van unlocked the last time we used it.
B. The thieves had a key
C. The door lock was picked

I find it hard to believe I screwed up and forgot to lock up. I always make sure doors and windows are locked. The weather was fine, the kids & dogs were at home when we left the van at the storage, normally the kids/dogs and weather stresses people and makes them rush around and perhaps forget, but it wasn't the case.

Could the thieves have had a key? The caravan was preowned when we bought it, what if by chance the previous owners kept a key and found the van?

Can these door locks be lock picked or have I been watching too much James Bond? Could whoever it was tried their luck with a lock pick and it worked?

Anyone else had anything similar happen to them? I can't stop thinking about it, it's really odd.

 

[ProfJohnL]

I'm sorry to read of your experience.

Sadly caravan locks are not the most secure and certainly most caravans up to the 1990s used a very basic lock system, for which there were relatively few key options, and many dealers legitimately had a bunch which would open up most caravans.

There are now more secure cylindrical locks but frankly the doors are not much of a challenge to a determined low life. There are things you can do to make the door mores secure, but then the weakest point becomes the windows.

The best advice is not to leave any valuables or personal items in a caravan when in storage, even when the caravans kept at home. Leave cupboards and draws open. Not only does it show there's nothing of value but it allows the caravan to air more thoroughly.

If the low life can see the cupboards are bare, there's less incentive for them to break in.

 

[PaulT]

Just curious - why would you want 32 inch and 22 inch televisons in a caravan?

 

[Raywood]

Until we bought a new one last year our previous caravans had standard locks with a very limited number of keys used. When we lost a key a new one was bought off a display in a dealers showroom with no trouble. A thief could easily get a full set and thefts using a key are certainly not unknown. The only consolation is they did not damage the caravan.

 

[RayS]

There are plenty of easy ways into a caravan without going through the door. Most window catches can be opened from the outside easily - I will not go into the details for obvious reasons, but you need to secure all the window catches as well as lock the door. it is so easy you will not believe.
Thieves rely on this and also that nobody will take any notice of unusual activity.

Some years ago I arrived at a site, pitched up with nobody noticing, went off site, came back, found i had locked myself out, 'broke in' to my own caravan in sight of others and not a thing was said.

Do secure everything you can, put anything valuable completely out of sight ( not big things on the floor covered with cushions, get a good alarm fitted although who is going to notice / do anything about it is another matter, but at least it may help with the insurers.

 

[ThePlotter]

I have a device called ' Minder ' it can be placed in the van and if someone enters it sends you a text message so in your case you would have known straight away and could either have gone to the van ,phoned the storage or phoned the police.

 

[gungadin]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I guess we'll need to keep a closer eye on things.

Just curious - why would you want 32 inch and 22 inch televisons in a caravan?

We had one for the kids in the awning and ours in the van.

I have a device called ' Minder ' it can be placed in the van and if someone enters it sends you a text message so in your case you would have known straight away and could either have gone to the van ,phoned the storage or phoned the police.

That sounds very good, do you have a link or more information for it? Thanks

 

[Sproket]

Have a look on the link below
Minder GSM Portable Security

 

[Raywood]

The keys on all except very new caravans are generally from a small number of variations and can be bought at most dealers. It is not unknown for a thief to have a set of these and with a bit of effort they can get in most caravans in store. The good thing is that the caravan was not damaged though so while it is a bad experience it could gave been far worse.
I am afraid the best answer is to remove all valuables and leave the curtains open and the locker and cupboard doors open so thieves can see there is nothing to steal.

 

[ThePlotter]

It really works and the link quoted is what you need, the battery last at least a year between charges, and i got a pay as you go sim with £10 on it ,and it will text you no matter where you are