As a wise business person once said, ‘‘time is the only commodity we deal with which cannot be counterfeited, stolen or placed in inventory. Remember, time is irreplaceable’’.
But when Zig Ziglar made that pertinent point, we’re not sure he had business van owners in mind. Because sadly, time and time again, business vans are a target for opportunistic thieves. And in some professions, losing your van can spell real trouble for the day-to-day running of your business. While sometimes this is just the luck of the draw, there are some things you can do to help your case and make things more secure. Here’s 5 IDEAL tips for keeping your business van safe.
ALARMS
First things first; it’s imperative that you make sure your van has an alarm installed. A specialist van alarm can be a serious deterrent to most thieves, as well as alerting the authorities, the owner or passers by to an incident, hopefully meaning the thief is likely to scarper once they realise they’ve been heard.
Go further; advertise loud and clear the fact that you have an alarm installed. Put some stickers on the van confirming that it is indeed protected. Thieves are looking for easy targets, and rely largely on opportunism; they certainly don’t want to be hanging around in the area for too long. Indeed, they’re often looking for reasons to move on to an easier target.
It’s also important to ensure that your driver remains safe at all times. Devices like lone worker alarms can ensure that the driver has the option of quickly calling for help and are tracked via GPS at all times so an external team can keep an eye on them
PARKING
For heaven’s sake, lock your van when you leave it! You’d be surprised how many times people just pop to the shop or nip back to collect something from the house and don’t lock the van. Even worse, drivers may sometimes leave their keys in the ignition. We don’t need to spell out why that’s a bad idea, do we?
Where you park at night also has a huge impact on the likelihood of a break in. Try and leave your van in a well-lit, well populated area. Industrial estates and public car parks are so often the scene of the crime as they tend to be badly lit with little in the way of comings and goings when the sun goes down.
That’s not to say that all vehicle crime occurs after hours. In the daytime park close to a store if you are popping in to get something, and never leave your van tucked away out of sight where it’s hard to see.
INTERNALLY
A partition or bulkhead from a company like Van Demon set behind the cab area is useful, firstly, as a precautionary measure; should you have an emergency or accident, the contents of the van do not crash forward into the driver and passenger. However, it also helps to deter thieves, as they cannot see what is in the van by looking through the front window. So, if you haven’t got
Consider what else might be visible. Particularly expensive tools and equipment should be secured in lockable storage boxes which can be bolted to the floor of the van. This means that even if a thief does manage to break into your van, getting away with your valuables in a hurry is going to be much harder. The same goes for cash in transit, a cash safe is the best way to reduce the risk of cash theft in a vehicle.
In addition to physical measures, safeguarding sensitive information stored within your business van is crucial. Implementing a security command centre can help you monitor and manage your data, ensuring that any potential breaches are addressed swiftly and effectively. Always encrypt data and use secure passwords to protect valuable information from unauthorised access while on the road.
EXTERNALLY
Be careful with branding your vehicle too overtly. Yes, we know, advertising your business is important and signwriting on vans is a common way to do this. But it can also act as a ‘come and get me’ sign for thieves since it suggests expensive equipment and tools lie in the van.
Any equipment carried on the exterior of the van also needs to be well secured. Ladders get stolen all the time from the roof, primarily due to the complacency of the driver. Don’t be that guy; you can get lockable clamps to ensure the ladder is not easy to remove. Copper also has a high value so if you carry copper piping or other copper products you should use pipe tubes, and again, they should be lockable.
TRACKING
Finally, satellite tracking or GPS location is perfect for keeping an eye on your vehicle. It might not stop a break-in as such but if your van is stolen, it can be more easily located. You’ll get it back quicker with far less hassle. What’s more, car insurance premiums and comprehensive coverage can sometimes depend on such software being installed.
Further road-based headaches? Check out these 4 IDEAL ways businesses can overcome road works.