Tool theft and how to protect against it . . .
Whether you’re a plumber, builder, electrician, mechanic, self employed or employed, tool theft is no joke. With recent figures suggesting that tool theft is on the rise, it’s more important than ever to protect your livelihood from the devastating consequences of chancers and thieves. As tradesmen, we know that tools are an essential part of everyday life, but what if this was taken away? No tools means, no work. No work, means no money. No money, means no bills paid. And so begins a snowball of devastation. The unfortunate thing is that these attacks quite often occur with little or no warning, in fact you may only discover the theft as you are due to leave for work, which is why we recommend as many deterrents as possible to keep your tools safe and secure. So let us help you to protect your tools in a few simple steps . . . 1. Tool Insurance This is one of the first things you should own as a tradesman. With so many companies offering different levels of cover, there really is no excuse not to have this in place. Yearly cover works out at pennies per day, offering cover in excess of £10,000 in many cases, giving you peace of mind should theft occur, so the question is . . . how can you afford not to? 2. Show them you mean business While some people argue that a huge padlock or van lock indicates there is something of value inside, it also proves that you are serious about protecting your belongings, therefore discouraging any chancers or passers by to break in. 3. The Krypton Factor That got your attention didn’t it?! If, on the off chance thieves do manage to gain entry, the last thing you want to do is make it easy for them to walk away with your hard earned collection of tools. Enter the krypton factor. This is where we recommend heavy duty, lockable tool boxes, lockable cabinets, lockable drawers, or anything else that requires time (and patience that they likely wouldn’t have) to decipher. With any luck, these lockable items might just stall them enough to walk away. And don’t forget to remove batteries and chargers for additional security, storing these in separate sections. 4. Mark your tools They may seem like a simple thing to do, but it’s very effective when it comes to recovery of tools. Mark them in a discreet yet visible place with either a name, symbol, logo or anything that is relevant to you and would make your tools instantly recognisable. It’s also a good idea to take photographs of these as proof should the need arise. 5. Tool trackers Brands such as Milwaukee, Dewalt and Makita offer tracking devices that are easily attached to your power tools providing easy connectivity, GPS signal and many alerts. We highly recommend these as a theft deterrent due to their quick and easy trackable features. Thieves won’t get far with these in place! 6. Smart parking For a no frills approach we recommend thinking outside the box when leaving your van unattended. Parking against a wall, building, gates or anything else that may cause an obstruction is a simple yet effective deterrent. Afterall, there’s no use trying to break in, if they can’t even open the doors! 7. CCTV An oldy but a goody. It’s safe to say that CCTV has evolved over the years, with many improvements along the way. Gone are the days of bulky tapes and stacks of storage, you can now check in at any time thanks to the technological advancements of CCTV monitoring apps. With the ability to keep an eye on your belongings at all times, you can quickly alert the police should anything appear untoward. CCTV provides live video footage, making it an essential part of catching the thieves, and they will be caught. And finally . . . Although a determined thief is hard to deter, we firmly believe that you can reduce the risk of becoming a target by following the tried and tested suggestions above. So what are you waiting for? Make the changes today, and lets stamp out tool theft once and for all. For more information about Tool theft please visit https://www.toolden.co.uk
Leading manufacturer puts full weight behind campaign to protect against tool theft
Joining other industry/brand leaders, Van Vault the originators of in-vehicle secure storage is putting its full weight behind an innovative campaign to tackle tool van tool theft. Based in Loughborough independent plumber Peter Booth (@PBPlumber) launched a petition last year aiming to get the issue of van theft taken more seriously. His #noVANber social media campaign calls on the Government to look at increasing ways to protect tradespeople from van tool theft. The campaign has garnered huge support, with the online petition now having over 38,000 signatures. Once 10,000 signatures are achieved the Government will respond to the petition and if it hits 100,000 it will be considered for debate in Parliament. Van Vault is the UK’s premier brand of containers for storing and securing tools in vehicles. Their range is available in a variety of sizes, each designed for use is different types of vehicles. Van Vault is supporting the campaign by promoting the petition details across all its own social media and online channels as well as offering products to incentivise people to sign up to the petition. Recent reports* claim that a van is broken into and tools stolen every 23 minutes in the UK, with an average of 62 thefts per day. This is reflected in data that shows that tool theft claims have increased by over 15 per cent and that the value of claims themselves have risen too, now averaging around £1,692.00 Tool theft is plaguing many sectors, the construction industry specifically has recently reported that more than half of builders in the UK have had their tools stolen, according to new research by the Federation of Master Builders (FMB). Deborah Hunt, Marketing Manager at Van Vault comments “Peter has done an excellent job of raising this as an issue and we’re hoping that by adding our support we, together with other leading brands, can take the campaign to the next level to an even wider audience.” Peter Booth added: “I got tired of seeing photos and stories from tradespeople who had their vans targeted and tools stolen, stopping them from working. I didn’t think it was fair. I wanted to gather support using social media influence to try and get the Government to look at possible ways to help make this crime less profitable for the culprits. “We now need to reach more people that are not on social media. If you could ask your customers, friends and family to support the cause by signing the #noVanber petition, we may be able to reach our target of 100,000 by May.” Click here to sign the petition. https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/231177
