Protect your delivery vehicle or van
Tips for courier drivers and tradespeople on how to prevent thefts from your vehicle.
Delivery vehicles are being targeted by offenders, including organised crime groups, due to the expensive goods they carry.
Methods to access the vehicle have also become more organised and sophisticated, and on occasions drivers have been threatened.
Tips to protect your delivery vehicle
Check your insurance
Consider taking out a tailored insurance policy that reflects the unique needs of your business and protects against the associated risks.
This can help prevent you being left out of pocket should anything happen to your van.
Stay alert
If you spot a suspicious vehicle following you, stay in your vehicle and:
- keep moving
- keep doors locked
- call the police
Consider installing a dashcam to act as a deterrent and potentially capture key evidence.
Make sure your mobile phone is fully charged, should you need it in an emergency. If something does not look or feel right, do not make the delivery.
If possible, consider using alternative routes when out delivering rather than always going the same way.
Be aware of distraction tactics, such as delaying drivers returning to their vehicles by engaging in conversation while someone tries to access the vehicle.
Always lock up
Always take the keys out of the ignition and lock your vehicle. It takes seconds for a thief to get into your van and make off with something valuable or the van itself.
Consider installing a tracker – if the worst were to occur and your vehicle were to be stolen, a tracker might enable officers to quickly locate it. See Thatcham’s security systems for vans.
Couriers park up several times a day to deliver goods to customers. While it is not practical to park in secure public car parks each time, try to find the safest spot every time you stop.
If possible, avoid dark or quiet streets, instead opt for well-lit areas with lots of people around and ideally in view of a CCTV camera. Try and block some of the doors by parking next to a wall or hedge.
At the end of each shift, try to park your van on a driveway if you have one, or even better, in your garage.
Again, you could see your insurance premium lowered if you tell your insurer that you park your van on your private property overnight, rather than on a public road.
Remove valuables
Always remove valuable items where possible.
Make sure no valuables are left on display when leaving your van – for any amount of time – and fully close all of the windows.
Even when parking on your driveway overnight, remove items like sat-navs, stereos or dashcams if they are not built into your vehicle.
Upgrade physical security
Upgrading locks and alarm systems will provide your vehicle and its contents with additional security. If you get a notification of a security upgrade to your vehicle, make sure you install it.
Consider installing window grilles, blanks and bulkheads to prevent thieves from seeing what is inside your vehicle. A window grille would prevent access if the window has been smashed.
Doors are one of the most vulnerable areas on vans and they can be forced open, so consider installing a stop-lock or a slam lock to help make it harder for criminals to get inside.
Tool theft prevention
Vans used by tradespeople are often targeted by thieves for their tools, as they are valuable and easily disposed of.
In addition to the guidance for delivery van drivers, tradespeople could:
- remove tools from your van when left overnight. If removing tools is not possible, fit a tool safe or van vault and fully secure it with good quality approved locks from Secured by Design
- engrave or mark your tools and their boxes with your postcode and house number. Register serial numbers, upload photos and record items as stolen for free at www.immobilise.com
- fit additional external locks, such as deadlocks and slamlocks, to van doors – if your van has factory deadlocks, activate them by double-pressing the lock button on your remote control
- install an on-board diagnostic (OBD) safe device – a secure lockable device that fits over the vehicle’s OBD port, inside the cabin, to prevent additional keys being coded
- keep your keys in an RFID-blocking wallet or metal biscuit tin at home – to prevent relay attacks
- invest in lock covers and cover plates – offering an extra visual deterrent as well as an extra protective barrier between the thief and the lock mechanism
- fit an approved alarm and immobiliser and remember to set it at all times – Thatcham has a range of Category 1 alarms and immobilisers for light commercial vehicles
- use an approved steering lock, gear clamp or a PedalBox – to encase the pedals when the vehicle is not in use
- invest in a GPS tracking device, especially if you are leasing the van