Caravan security on driveway
I'm new to this forum, having been a CC member for a number of years. We are moving house in a few weeks time, we have room for off road parking for our Caravan on the driveway. But I am considering a couple of 'parking posts' fitted in the ground that will hopefully add to the security and serve as deterrent. Does anyone have any experience of such things, or installing them?
Comments
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The more secure type are those that are recessed in the ground in a tube but are obviously more difficult to install.
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Seems relatively easy to secure a caravan at home. What I'd be bothered about is how secure your house is when the caravan disappears for two weeks. As much as I would like to keep mine at home I keep it in storage 5 minutes away for that reason.
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Having worked in insurance I do not know of any cases of theft when the caravan is away. I cannot say it does not happen but it must be very rare.
Most thefts are random opportunist events although it is always possible they have clocked the caravan before.
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at last, the first sensible 'expert' post on this oft trotted out line....
we keep our MH on our drive, have for seven years, were away in France for four months....with car on the drive and van in france so 'obviously away'....
a week later, went on a cruise to Fjiords.....car at Spithampton and van on drive so 'obviously at home'....
halfway through the holiday, got a call from police to say we had been burgled....
.....so, you never know......and nothing to do with being staked out by MH/caravan spotters.....
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If the thieves want your caravan or want to rob your home -- You cannot stop it happening. They will find a way.
But
As stated previously, most thefts are opportunist thefts.
For the last 40 or so years we have always kept our Caravans and Motorhomes next to the house, they have never been touched nor has the house been burgled while we have been away.
It is so easy to become so neurotic about crime that the holiday can be spoiled.
Just take all the normal precautions required by your insurance companies and then don't give it another thought.
K
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Agree with BB and K. We keep our van and MH on drives, have done for last 30 odd years, with no problems. Up to the individual though, and you will know your circumstances best.
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Fixing a security post to a concrete slab isn't going to stop anything.
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If the thieves want your caravan or want to rob your home -- You cannot stop it happening. They will find a way.
But
As stated previously, most thefts are opportunist thefts.
For the last 40 or so years we have always kept our Caravans and Motorhomes next to the house, they have never been touched nor has the house been burgled while we have been away.
It is so easy to become so neurotic about crime that the holiday can be spoiled.
Just take all the normal precautions required by your insurance companies and then don't give it another thought.
K
Thieves given a choice will go for the easiest target that fits their needs. It is astounding though the lengths some go to to get what they want. Security devices will put some off but others do seem to see them as a challenge but overall they are useful.
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I was a caravanner in a previous life if you get my drift ,got a brand new Coachman Amara ,had plenty of room for it on the drive but decided to put it in storage chose a place that was well off the road if you didn't know about it you wouldn,t know it was
there it had fence round ,padlocked gates steel barrier in fronts of gates thought it was a a safe place but we were wrong she was pinched one Sat night she was just 3 weeks old ,police said it was gypsies and by the time we realised it had gone it would have
been in Ireland .police of course not do anything ,so even if you think it's safe it's not always the case ....0 -
We keep ours on the drive, have done for years, the only bad experience we have had was one morning I left the house and noticed the rear legs were about 3" off the ground !!! Backed up got the winder and put them down again sharpish. A few days later happened
to be chatting to a policeman friend and mentioned this ...he said yes we have heard of that one, they come round once with their own winder, and put them up a little, then they come back a couple of days later and if they are still up - its a quick job, the
van is gone! If they are down again they know someone may be watching and move on. We invested in a set of leg locks next day
Alison
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I was a caravanner in a previous life if you get my drift ,got a brand new Coachman Amara ,had plenty of room for it on the drive but decided to put it in storage chose a place that was well off the road if you didn't know about it you wouldn,t know it was
there it had fence round ,padlocked gates steel barrier in fronts of gates thought it was a a safe place but we were wrong she was pinched one Sat night she was just 3 weeks old ,police said it was gypsies and by the time we realised it had gone it would have
been in Ireland .police of course not do anything ,so even if you think it's safe it's not always the case ....I am afraid nowhere is totally safe but storage compounds are safer. Not sure if they are still there but the C&CC did have details of where thefts occured at one time and your driveway was the worst for thefts and CASSOA gold sites best. You simply have
to do your best and keep your fingers crossed.0 -
the next one we bought we put into a cassoa gold storage site but they can be so expensive to use ,anyway that was years ago ,I use my camper eeryday so she is not kept in storage
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the next one we bought we put into a cassoa gold storage site but they can be so expensive to use ,anyway that was years ago ,I use my camper eeryday so she is not kept in storage
I do understand the problem and as I say you do your best. With Storage insurance and servicing our caravan costs us £900 a year before it moves so it is not a cheap holiday for us.
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We keep ours at home, I also have a P.I.R. in the van and when we at home the house alarm plugs into the van via an 12s plug and socket
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Our van is on the drive, two feet from the side of a fence, backed up to a wall, a telescopic post cemented in either side of a A Frame, the posts alone were £150 each, what do you save on your insurance, £0. Also have other security measures in place such
as Leg Locks, Chain over the axle, but not declared to the insurance company as we wouldn't get any discounts for using them, but if declared and it goes missing it would count against us as they were not in use.For those concerned that we could be burgled whilst away, other members of the house are in residence along with a couple of four legged ones.
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The best bit of simple advice I can give is if your van has a motor mover have the van on the drive with the hitch up against the garage door or a wall, fence etc, we keep our van at home and whenever we return i pull into the drive unhitch the van and
then use the mover to pull the van right upto a wall, this stops someone backing up to your van cutting any post down and hitching up.0 -
Our van is right up against a wall and another building, behind locked gates and the type of posts that are recessed into the ground as well as being put A frame in first, whereas our neighbour's van is on his front driveway with just a hitchlock. I think,
if I was looking to pinch one, I know which would be the easier target.
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Our van is right up against a wall and another building, behind locked gates and the type of posts that are recessed into the ground as well as being put A frame in first, whereas our neighbour's van is on his front driveway with just a hitchlock. I think,
if I was looking to pinch one, I know which would be the easier target.I would agree yours is the safer one. Hitchlocks are next to useless. In the drive a working alarm is probably needed so if thieves do try to steal it then if it wakens you and the neighbours there is a good chance they will abandon the theft.
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I'm probably neurotic about security! Caravan nose first on drive, two Alko wheel locks, hitchlock, caravan alarm and Tracker, monitored alarm system in house and professionally installed CCTV system which I can monitor remotely when away - and we live
in a very low crime area. I think its largely about what you're happy with and what gives you peace of mind.0 -
I read somewhere that the alko wheel lock that goes into a dedicated receiver on the caravan has never been defeated. Not sure if that's true or not but I certainly cannot see how you would get it off even with power tools.
It's certainly a right pain to get everything lined up to fit it and thats on a single axle!
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I read somewhere that the alko wheel lock that goes into a dedicated receiver on the caravan has never been defeated. Not sure if that's true or not but I certainly cannot see how you would get it off even with power tools.
It's certainly a right pain to get everything lined up to fit it and thats on a single axle!
Gas axe apparently.
Wether it is an urban myth or not, 2 caravans in the locale were nicked, 1 off a drive, the other a gold standard storage site. Apparently the tea leafs had visited over time offering to trim trees, fix fences, block pave the drive etc. Each time they passed
the caravans a quick turn on the steadies to raise them slightly but not so you'd notice.Have had lots of passing traders offering to pave the drive. So each time I go out I check the steadies are down fully.
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What's a gas axe?
I understand explaining the weaknesses of caravan security is not allowed on here. But google is your friend, apparently.
The gas axe would be useful in preventing procreation of the thieving classes once caught, in the realms of equality of course
Do
unto others as you would have done unto you0 -
I read somewhere that the alko wheel lock that goes into a dedicated receiver on the caravan has never been defeated. Not sure if that's true or not but I certainly cannot see how you would get it off even with power tools.
It's certainly a right pain to get everything lined up to fit it and thats on a single axle!
I gather it has been defeated at least once but it is certainly beyond the ability of most thieves and it is a pity that it is not the easiest thing to fix. For caravans on the drive it is certainly the most effective but a loud alarm would also be my second
choice.0
