stolen caravans

[perry2]

just to let everyone know that in the bucks/ oxon area there have been 5 caravan thefts in the last four weeks, the most recent yesterday, i had mine stolen 3 weeks ago, compass magnum 544, 2007 model. everybody please, please be vigilant its an horrible experience. and the police belive it to be a proffesional gang stealing to order. perry

 

[BrianStAlbans]

Sorry to here about your caravan Perry.

I had a call from the police yesterday saying they have found my Swift Conquerer 590 salon.

Good news you would think but as it was stolen over 6 years ago I wasn't overly excited ;o)

Brian

 

[perry2]

hello brian, goodness me thats along time ago, where did they find it and did you get a replacemant van with the insurance money????, what happens now if you did, im assuming the owners now would be the insurance company, was it travellers who stole it????? would be interested to find out. perry

 

[BrianStAlbans]

Hi Perry, the police haven't given me any details but they have made an arrest , the caravan was found in Cumbria.

When the caravan was stolen I gave the police details of a car and two men who knocked on my door the week before,the house looked empty but I was at home, and when I saw the same car leaving a travellers site after the theft I called them again only to be told they couldn't just go in accusing people if they didn't have evidence !!! They didn't give a toss! which I should have know as it took 12 hours to take the details of the caravan after reporting the theft. They told me just to claim on the insurance.

Yes the insurance paid out but only after theatening court action as they said I didn't have a new for old policy. After requesting the telephone tapes for the day I took out the insurance they settled out of court. Good job they record for training purposes ;O)

I sell caravans for a living and have spoken to two people in the last week who have had caravans stolen . One was a Hobby that had just been purchased and was not insured !!!!!!

I think the way things are at the moment caravan theft will be on the up as the demand is so great and used caravans are in short supply.I think a lot of caravans stolen now will for sale in the used ads and not stolen to live in.

hope you sort yours out soon.

Brian

 

[sheila_374397204]

If it was found in Cumbria this week it's bound to be travellers it's the Appleby Horse Fair 4th to 11th June.

 

[BrianStAlbans]

Think you are correct Sheila, just done a quick Google search which says 5 stolen caravans have been seized.

 

[perry2]

hi brian, what was the coogle site you searcged for the stolen caravans??? i looked at loads of private adds and on e/bay and also dealer sites too but no joy yet!!!.

ours was a fixed bed model and certainly big enough to live in, makes you feel sick just at the thought. perry

 

[PAULA_374454120]

Our family caravan was stolen on Friday from the Bucks/Herts boarder. Any advice on how to detail with the insurance company?

 

[Jackie_374224453]

Yep, be firm, tell them that you want it sorted quickly and ask them why they are not doing more to promote strong responses when stolen caravans are found .

If they don;t beleive you about security show them our caravan theft on CCTV 'You tube- caravan stolen in broad daylight' -

Also, ensure that if your caravan is found, your insurance company will speak to you before selling it on - our has not and we now wonder if all our posessions are still in it adn who is benfitting from them.

Regards Jackie

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Jackie,

Technically if an insurance company has settled a claim for theft, any property that is recovered is theirs not yours. they are not obliged to tell you anything about it as it is no longer your property.

 

[Jackie_374224453]

Thanks for that John. However, the insurance company concerned paid out only for the caravan..there were a couple of thousands of pounds worth of stuff in there , that were therefore not theirs.....bedding, crockery, flat sceeen TV, CDs and DVDs that my husband had bought me, walking gear, special wine glasses, towels, pans and so on and so on....I assume that someone, either police or insurance should have at least afforded us the opportunity to ask about these things???

 

[TD42]

I was on a site in switzland a couple of weeks ago when 2white vans pulling Hobby caravans came on site the rear number plate of each transit had been removed & fitted to the rear of the caravans one, a twin axle & one a single axle UK model. both seemed quite new the twin had a irish couple & child the other was a lone english man they seemed a bit upset to find other english people on site & asked for directions to a towm 40 k away & promptly left site but did not go i the direction of the town they asked directions to

Make you a bit suspicious

 

[Jackie_374224453]

Yep,its high time the ports got more cute....their lax security is aiding and abetting many a caravan theft and many other crimes.

 

[Lutz]

As long as caravans in the UK aren't registered in their own right, same as cars, there's next to no chance of catching a stolen one. The authorities abroad will only even attempt to find one if they have the means to identify it by number plate.

 

[Lutz]

As long as caravans in the UK aren't registered in their own right, same as cars, there's next to no chance of catching a stolen one. The authorities abroad will only even attempt to find one if they have the means to identify it by number plate.

I meant to say ".... there's next to no chance of catching a stolen one once it's left the country".

 

[TimB]

Hi am growing increasingly paranoid about the security of my caravan after hearing and reading about the increase in thefts. My caravan is stored at my home it has a hitchlock, wheel lock, stabiliser lock and alarm. Is this really enough, i thought this would be the norm as caravans are not cheap to buy but with the increase in thefts does the old adage " if they want it " come true. Should i be doing anything else? The caravan is insured.

 

[Damian]

Tim, at the end of the day it matters not one bit how much you pay for security devices etc, if the thieves really want your van, they will have it, as has been proven too many times.

Until the law enforcement agencies put van theft higher on the list of priorities, then all you will get is a crime number to pass on to your insurers.

That is why you need insurance that WILL pay out in the event of theft.

Having said all that, just keep things in perspective, it is not worth having sleepless nights over, or damaging your health, worrying about it.

A caravan is replaceable, your health is not.

 

[ProfJohnL]

It is a sad reflection on our society that we have to take precautions to cover the possibility of theft.

The loss of a caravan is an important issue, but in most cases its not the loss of caravan itself that causes most distress but the personal items that have been left in them.

If you take care to remove all your personal items and extra bits and pieces when you return from a holiday , then if the caravan is stolen then all the thieves get is the caravan, which can be replaced.

 

[Dustydog]

Tim

A few years ago CC magazine published a picture of thieves using a mobile crane to lift and steal a caravan from a chaps back garden!!

Just make sure you have good solid insurance and relax. If it gets stolen it can be replaced.

Cheers

Dustydog

 

[TimB]

thanks fellas you are of course right. will feel better though when hitched up and heading down to Dover.

 

[Chris_374459067]

I do not wish to worry anyone regarding the caravan security but sometime during the evening of Thursday the 16th of july I had my 2005 Ace Supreme Globstar stolen from my premises. They tried to cut through the lock on the gate but this was hardened steel, they then rammed the the gate until the 20mm diameter steel hinge pins broke. This also broke the 6" square steel gate post. They then pushed the gates to one side. They then proceeded to remove the bulldog wheel clamp by bending back the the top bar as if it was tissue paper, no sign of any damage to the paint on the wheel clamp. The Al-Co hitch lock was removed by some sort of bar to prise it away. It was quite badly twisted and destorted by the time they got it off. The wheel clamp and the hitch lock and hitch ball was left on the ground as they where disgarded. They drove off with my caravan with the hookup cable still attached until it pulled out of the socket, and with the alarm sounding.No body heard or saw a thing. The police said that they have never seen so much determination to steel a caravan. They also stole aluminium and steel to the value of around

 

[Neil_374459237]

Has anyone used a GPS tracker for their caravan?

I have used GPS trackers where you can recover the tracker and see where it has been, but there is another type, not the insurance ones with large annual premiums, but something like a Snooper Tracker, around

 

[D_374476363]

There is a tracker on the market that is used to recover caravans after they have been stolen. It doesn't use GPS and has it's own battery and the company who market it go and locate it when it's been stolen so you don't have to rely on just the police.

Doesn't stop it being stolen which would be good but it does have a movement alarm so you would know when it was moved which would help you get it back quickly or stop it going.

This isn't much use though if you don't want it back once someone stolen it