WARNING OVER INCREASE IN LEISURE VEHICLE THEFTS

Leisure vehicle owners, especially new owners, are leaving themselves vulnerable to their vehicles being stolen, warns a GPS tracker provider.

Trackershop says the latest figures indicate that top-of-the-range motorhomes, campervans and caravans are being coveted by criminals as much as high-end luxury cars, due to the high demand for these vehicles and relative ease of which they can be stolen.

It says inexperienced owners aren’t taking the precautions needed to protect their ’vans.

The number of people buying leisure vehicles – both new and used – has increased significantly over the last two years with demand outstripping supply.

But this surge in demand is causing a spike in thefts.

Trackershop said that, while sales of leisure vehicles is rising, this is not matched by a comparable rise in tracker sales, suggesting a knowledge gap when it comes to how to protect a ’van.

Many insurers now require trackers to be fitted before they will insure them, while there is a growing consensus that trackers should be fitted as a matter of course to all new leisure vehicles.

“Recent research discovered that just 13% of motorhomes and 6% of campervans have trackers installed, whilst 54% and 45% of these vehicles respectively don’t have alarms,” said Trackershop’s MD, Shaun Carse.

“Even though we have noticed a significant increase in motorhome and caravan tracker requests in the past 18 months, we know from the soaring sales figures that there are still recreational vehicles out there that are vulnerable and that are not being adequately protected.”

He points out that vehicles fitted with a device have a 95% recovery rate, compared to those without.