Burgled while we slept
We are currently caravanning in France our first time for 26 years. A few days after our arrival at a very pleasant Loire valley site (from the camping cheques book) we were robbed in our sleep along with 3 other outfits, 2 British and 1 Dutch. The perpetrators moved our caravan steps to a window and opened this from the outside and were able to reach in and help themselves to whatever they could find. Unfortunately for us this included my handbag and all the spending money for our holiday. We thought they had also taken my debit and credit cards but we later found these in my abandoned handbag amongst the bushes. We were lucky as they didn't enter our van to take anything else. Others were not so lucky as they broke into windows next to the door and were able to get in and escape with ipads and iphones. They also removed trousers from all the vans in order to search the pockets. We were woken when they broke a window in the car to steel our day bag, and the alarm went off. This only contained sunhats, water and raincoats and so was left abandoned in their escape.
When we return to the Uk we will be fitting our windows with some security locks or alarms as this has been quite a trauma and has manged to waste several days in our valuable holiday. The camp site manager and the police were very helpful and this side was dealt with within hours, but we have spent hours on phones getting repairs organised and cards cancelled etc and are still waiting for the car window to be replaced 3 days later.
Seemingly this sort of thing is happening more and more as the populations across Europe change, and so it should be taken as a warning to take preventative action as we wish we had realised was required.
Comments
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I'm so sorry to read this. Our house was burgled some 35 years ago whilst we slept, it is not a nice feeling at all. I do hope you get things sorted with your car very soon. A timely reminder to us all to take any sort of security seriously. Please try
to enjoy the rest of your holiday, you are both safe and as annoying and time consuming as it is things can be sorted/replaced, except the cash. We always take a card each, kept very separately, for withdrawing cash - commission free if we can manage it,
and have very little cash around.0 -
So sorry that you have had such an awful experience.
Thank you for taking the time to post and let other members know what happened as it might save some-one else from having their holiday ruined.
I hope this has not put you off from future trips.
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As someone interested in towing a caravan abroad next year for the first time-this story has really put me off. I have no wish to feel trapped by security when caravans by their nature can never be secure and are easy pickings for thieves. Appreciate the
heads up. Thank you0 -
As someone who was robbed in August of last year in Spain, I can sympathise totally ACCornwall. At least in France the police take such things seriously. Unfortunately I cannot say the same for Spain. Even so, I hope this does not put people off coming to France in their caravans and motorhomes. This sort of criminal behaviour can happen anywhere and just shows how important it is to be aware of it as a possibility. With awareness and sensible precautions it is less likely to happen
I have to say also that this is why we use official camp sites rather than aires. Generally speaking security is good with overnight barriers and other campers around offering some reassurance. Most of the people we have spoken to who have been robbed have been sited on aires.
PS: I also think anyone would think twice about breaking into our caravan as our dog would probably object vociferously...We were robbed in a hotel restaurant so unfortunately our dog was not with us!
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