Stopping the thieving scum
Discussion
After catching 2 delightful guys stealing a catalytic converter red handed at 8.30 pm last weds evening it's made me think about the security for the remaining 6 vans I have.
All 6 vans are sprinters or crafters, the van of choice of the thieving scum, they are all parked in a gated yd, with 6 ft eye wall/fencing , security lighting, full cctv and all vans fitted with cat locks.
But still they decided to have a go, and got as far as getting one off the van and over the fence before I turned up and scared them off.
So, anybody any ideas what else I can do to keep them at bay, bar wiring the vans to the mains or sitting in one with a shotgun.
I've been thinking about getting 4 railway sleepers bolted together under each van, the vans simply drive over them and park when returning to the yd each day, the height of the sleepers stopping them getting under the van, and the weight of 4 bolted together should stop them pushing them out the way.
Any of you guys have vans, and if so do you worry about this, on speaking to my ins broker he says he gets approx 5 claims a day for stolen cats, one of my customers had 28 vehicles done a few weeks ago, cctv showed they were in his yd for over 4 hrs.
Welcome any other thoughts on what else I can do, at 2k plus per cat my nerves are a mess at the moment.
All 6 vans are sprinters or crafters, the van of choice of the thieving scum, they are all parked in a gated yd, with 6 ft eye wall/fencing , security lighting, full cctv and all vans fitted with cat locks.
But still they decided to have a go, and got as far as getting one off the van and over the fence before I turned up and scared them off.
So, anybody any ideas what else I can do to keep them at bay, bar wiring the vans to the mains or sitting in one with a shotgun.
I've been thinking about getting 4 railway sleepers bolted together under each van, the vans simply drive over them and park when returning to the yd each day, the height of the sleepers stopping them getting under the van, and the weight of 4 bolted together should stop them pushing them out the way.
Any of you guys have vans, and if so do you worry about this, on speaking to my ins broker he says he gets approx 5 claims a day for stolen cats, one of my customers had 28 vehicles done a few weeks ago, cctv showed they were in his yd for over 4 hrs.
Welcome any other thoughts on what else I can do, at 2k plus per cat my nerves are a mess at the moment.
Edited by Quattromaster on Sunday 19th November 16:42
There's a saying in the security industry: a fence only keeps out those who don't really want to get in. In other words, passive protection only deters the amateurs, which would probably cover the two you scared off.
However, most thieves are lazy. If your cats are more difficult to nick that someone else's just a mile or two away, then they'll leave you alone. Your suggestion is a good one. It'll put off those who lack a bit on initiative as well as the bone idle. They will come up with a way of circumventing the method sooner or later, mainly by talking to others, etc.
Advice varies: some suggest putting vehicles out of sight, others that leaving them in plain view gives a degree of security. You can take your choice.
Eight vans together is a bit of a target to the pros who will work out a way of getting at the cats, even if it means stealing all the vans, so some variation in storage can help.
One way that a trout farm dealt with intruders was a series of alarms. The owners changed locations and type of alarm on an irregular basis and had a system of call out if any went off. The farm was in the middle of nowhere and although in those days the police turned up to CC alarms, it could take up to 20 mins for a unit to arrive. They had a call out system whereby the designated person would turn up and merely record index numbers, that sort of thing. The abandoned vehicle the police found one time must have had its tyres slashed before they got to the farm. Eventually the serious thefts stopped and just criminal damage and pathetically inept att. burglaries were all that occurred.
However, most thieves are lazy. If your cats are more difficult to nick that someone else's just a mile or two away, then they'll leave you alone. Your suggestion is a good one. It'll put off those who lack a bit on initiative as well as the bone idle. They will come up with a way of circumventing the method sooner or later, mainly by talking to others, etc.
Advice varies: some suggest putting vehicles out of sight, others that leaving them in plain view gives a degree of security. You can take your choice.
Eight vans together is a bit of a target to the pros who will work out a way of getting at the cats, even if it means stealing all the vans, so some variation in storage can help.
One way that a trout farm dealt with intruders was a series of alarms. The owners changed locations and type of alarm on an irregular basis and had a system of call out if any went off. The farm was in the middle of nowhere and although in those days the police turned up to CC alarms, it could take up to 20 mins for a unit to arrive. They had a call out system whereby the designated person would turn up and merely record index numbers, that sort of thing. The abandoned vehicle the police found one time must have had its tyres slashed before they got to the farm. Eventually the serious thefts stopped and just criminal damage and pathetically inept att. burglaries were all that occurred.
Edited by Derek Smith on Monday 20th November 09:45
Riley Blue said:
All the vans have these fitted, included the one that was done this week, they simply cut through it with a cordless 4" disc cutter, lol, I may as well wiped my arse with the money I've spent on these, it would have been a better use of my money. Smiler. said:
How do they get at them, jack up the van & slide underneath?
Nope, simply slide underneath, a sprinter is high enough of the ground, slide under the back, cut through pipe, then slide under the front, reach up and pop bonnet, open bonnet and cut it away from where it meets the turbo, using a cordless disc cutter, easy when you know how. 1) You could wire up a non lethal cattle electric fence energisers to the vans.
The tyres will insulate if from the ground and should give them a belt causing them to smash their head into the underside of the vehicle. Might recover some dna later.
Powered from the vans own battery and fitted inside to prevent it being deactivated.
Hidden magnetic switch for driver to disable with an external magnet in sweet spot before he gets in.They may wear gloves but should still get a belt if damp.
2) A pir sensor hooked into the van alarm (probably by splicing in paralle with a door switch) causing it to activate when it detects movement underneath the vehicle. (Obviously position so it isn't looking directly at the cat or activate it when leaving the yard and cats have cooled).. An ultra bright led also triggered and aimed should give some recoverable dna later..
3) If you can park the cars exactly in a line then a couple of break beam detectors firing under the vans in the vicinity of the cats. One system protects all the vans parked in a line. Something like this..
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/100m-Perimeter-Alarm-In...
4) Hidden paintball gun activated by the above firing under the vans should help. a couple of hidden guns protects several parked in a line.. Will scare off cats etc as well. An infra red camera activated by the same system watching the fun should make for some good youtube videos..
Something like this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIbkLjjlMV8&in...
The tyres will insulate if from the ground and should give them a belt causing them to smash their head into the underside of the vehicle. Might recover some dna later.
Powered from the vans own battery and fitted inside to prevent it being deactivated.
Hidden magnetic switch for driver to disable with an external magnet in sweet spot before he gets in.They may wear gloves but should still get a belt if damp.
2) A pir sensor hooked into the van alarm (probably by splicing in paralle with a door switch) causing it to activate when it detects movement underneath the vehicle. (Obviously position so it isn't looking directly at the cat or activate it when leaving the yard and cats have cooled).. An ultra bright led also triggered and aimed should give some recoverable dna later..
3) If you can park the cars exactly in a line then a couple of break beam detectors firing under the vans in the vicinity of the cats. One system protects all the vans parked in a line. Something like this..
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/100m-Perimeter-Alarm-In...
4) Hidden paintball gun activated by the above firing under the vans should help. a couple of hidden guns protects several parked in a line.. Will scare off cats etc as well. An infra red camera activated by the same system watching the fun should make for some good youtube videos..
Something like this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIbkLjjlMV8&in...
Edited by peterperkins on Sunday 19th November 18:39
te.What about some sort of retro-fittable quick release bracket so you can whip your cat off in a minute or two? Some kind of quick release clamps/joint or something?
Like, a clamp for the pipe plus four heavy duty QR butterfly catches or something?
Make a base plate up with welded mounts, fix that permanently to the underside of the floor, then the quick release/butterflies attach to the mount points, and the compression clamp locks the pipe together. Or something.
Then you could fabricate a load up and sell them and make £,£££,£££'s!
(anyone seeing the value in this and giving it a go, can In have 5% please?!)
Like, a clamp for the pipe plus four heavy duty QR butterfly catches or something?
Make a base plate up with welded mounts, fix that permanently to the underside of the floor, then the quick release/butterflies attach to the mount points, and the compression clamp locks the pipe together. Or something.
Then you could fabricate a load up and sell them and make £,£££,£££'s!
(anyone seeing the value in this and giving it a go, can In have 5% please?!)
Here’s some info I’ve found;
“It is difficult to completely stop the threat but there are some things you can do to prevent the risk of catalytic converter theft:
Park your car in a garage or secure area if possible.
Park in well-lit and busy areas.
If you have a fleet of cars, consider defensive parking. This is where you block high clearance vehicles with low clearance ones to restrict the access underneath.
If your catalytic converter is ‘bolt on’ consider having the bolts welded shut.
Be aware of anyone looking underneath or working on cars in your area.
Use a security marking kit to register your catalytic converter (see below)
Marking your catalytic converter can help protect it from the risk of theft. It also makes it possible to track it and easier to convict offenders.
You can buy security marking kits from Retainagroup
http://www.retainagroup.com/
The kits contain a coded sticker that you put on your catalytic converter and coat it with a permanent fluid to mark it.
You then register your code on the International Security Register (ISR) database, run by Retainagroup.
A marked catalytic converter makes it more difficult for a thief to sell it on and may deter them from attempting to steal it. Displaying a sticker in your window to state that it is marked might also put off a thief.“
If you have some sort of identification number on your catalytic converters, hand these numbers over to the police to log them, then they become easily traceable. What self respecting scrappy will take a load of bits from theifs when they are marked up and known to the police?
The local police where I live have an annual event for people to come in, meet the officers and they mark up garage tools, pushbikes, gardening equipment to deter shed break ins. That might be something to speak to the local police about too!
Hope any of this helps, it’s awful to be the innocent party in something like this
“It is difficult to completely stop the threat but there are some things you can do to prevent the risk of catalytic converter theft:
Park your car in a garage or secure area if possible.
Park in well-lit and busy areas.
If you have a fleet of cars, consider defensive parking. This is where you block high clearance vehicles with low clearance ones to restrict the access underneath.
If your catalytic converter is ‘bolt on’ consider having the bolts welded shut.
Be aware of anyone looking underneath or working on cars in your area.
Use a security marking kit to register your catalytic converter (see below)
Marking your catalytic converter can help protect it from the risk of theft. It also makes it possible to track it and easier to convict offenders.
You can buy security marking kits from Retainagroup
http://www.retainagroup.com/
The kits contain a coded sticker that you put on your catalytic converter and coat it with a permanent fluid to mark it.
You then register your code on the International Security Register (ISR) database, run by Retainagroup.
A marked catalytic converter makes it more difficult for a thief to sell it on and may deter them from attempting to steal it. Displaying a sticker in your window to state that it is marked might also put off a thief.“
If you have some sort of identification number on your catalytic converters, hand these numbers over to the police to log them, then they become easily traceable. What self respecting scrappy will take a load of bits from theifs when they are marked up and known to the police?
The local police where I live have an annual event for people to come in, meet the officers and they mark up garage tools, pushbikes, gardening equipment to deter shed break ins. That might be something to speak to the local police about too!
Hope any of this helps, it’s awful to be the innocent party in something like this
Gassing Station | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff