Stolen caravan
My 3 seasons old Swift Elegance Grande was stolen recently from my home, a place I have stored my caravan since 2006 without issue.
What is disconcerting is the fact that the thieves evaded every security device that came with the van, hitch lock, wheel locks, tracker, alarm.
I found the tracker they had removed in the field behind where the van was parked, I recently found the Alarm box under the hedge alongside where the van was parked. Clearly the thieves knew where to locate the tracker, which i believed was embedded somewhere in the van, sadly not, a small box with 3 plug in wires & a Velcro strip on one side, they ripped it out when they broke into the van & discarded it, in a similar way they dealt with the alarm box, Basically both security items were rendered useless. Frankly I had no idea where the tracker was, I did know where the alarm box was screwed to the floor, or was, under the left bunk/settee.
Needles to sat the van is for me a total loss along with all my personal possessions, I am going to have to start again from scratch.
I spoke with Sargent who made the security devices, who told me that Swift fit them to the vans in manufacture & locate them accordingly
I have e emailed Swift who said they hide the devices (tracker) in the van, which is clearly not the case. I only recently found the alarm box , so I have written again to Swift to ask them why the alarm box was so easy to remove, I await their reply.
It is extremely disappointing, to have lost the van & possession's with it, what is more disappointing is the factory fitted security devices failed as in not fit for purpose.
I am sending this to make other members aware that they may wish to review their security arrangements & not trust the Swift installed devices as I did naively, on a caravan that is advertised as the Pinnacle of caravanning.
I now believe the thieves who took my van are extremely skilled at their craft, they were slick, quick & effective in equal measure, they knew exactly what to do as though they had an inside track on my vans security, which they did whilst I was sat 30 yards away.
Swift need to review the security devices they fit, which are currently under par , based on my experience
Moderator Comment - Hoylander, I have moved this into the discussion area as I think more people will see it there. Sorry to hear about your problem.
Comments
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Sorry to hear about the loss. According to an old report by the C&CC Insurance drives are the most common spot for thefts. In general they are easy to spot there and thieves can generally size up the security without too much trouble. These thieves seem to have been very professional indeed though.
I am afraid the tracker on a Swift is always going to be in one of a small number of places and some thieves will know this and where they will be. These Trackers have worked in other cases though, in one instance, some time back, three caravans were stolen in one night from Preston Caravans and the trackers allowed recovery of all three before they even got out of the city boundary. They do work but not always.
Possibly you need to get your dealer to move them when you buy the caravan or ignore it and fit another similar device elsewhere.
The same tends to apply to the alarm. They are all fitted in the same place so if you know where the box or siren is it possible to silence the alarm before it goes off. This is particularly necessary for thieves when the caravan is in the drive as they cannot afford an alarm going off. Again a retrofit unit is possibly more effective.
Hitch locks are useless. Thieves can chain or rope the caravan to the towing vehicle so do not even have to attack them. A caravan locked on to a security post is more effective, as it is difficult to get past many of them
Not sure what wheel locks you had but most can be overcome in a few minutes. The ALKO is the most secure and requires burning off which is far more difficult.
Sadly nothing is a guarantee against theft, you can only do your best. Make things as difficult as possible and many will move on to the next model, but sometimes you get thieves who simply will not give up and there is very little you can do there. Winter wheels are worth a try though as that means things start to get even more difficult for thieves but are a real bind for you as well.
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Yes, sorry to hear of your loss, flippin’ ratbags.
As it happens, I needed to replace the battery in the tracking device on our 2019 Swift Challenger, and obviously I needed to know where the device was. After much back and forth between myself, Swift (via the dealer) and Sargent, I got nowhere, impasse. However, after some nudging and winking I was able to locate the tracker and replace the battery. I got the impression that those in the industry know exactly where these devices are. Given the location (which I won’t disclose), I can only imagine that it will always be in the same place, considering ease of production processes.
As an aside, I agree that determined thieves will find a way to steal a caravan. However, I do think that a security post is as good as it gets. I had one made many (30?) years ago, and set it in concrete. I would consider that to be a significant deterrent.
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Isn't a security post only as good as the lock on it.
Can anybody direct me to a site of a manufacturer they have [a good] experience of please.
Colin
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I would look for one that you can attach and lock the hitch to and avoid padlocks as these are vulnerable to attack. Locking the hitch on means that thieves not only have to overcome the post, but get the hitch off it. Nothing is perfect though, all you can do is make the caravan so secure that they try a less well protected one. What the devices sell is time, thieves want to get in and away as quickly as possible to reduce the chance of being caught.
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