Horseboxes are one of the most commonly stolen types of vehicles in rural areas, largely due to the fact that they are generally worth a lot of money and are often kept in isolated locations where they make easy pickings.
Just last month, police in Northumberland released CCTV footage of a horsebox being stolen from a rural property some time after midnight. Elsewhere in August, a horse trailer and ride-on mower were stolen from a paddock in Suffolk, while £7,000 worth of tack was stolen from a horsebox in the Wirral.
Clearly, with horsebox theft and related crimes so rife, the most sensible and immediate precaution to take is to make sure that your horsebox insurance covers you for the theft of the vehicle and its contents. But there are other things you can do to help prevent the theft of your vehicle and increase the chances of it being recovered if stolen.
1. Keep your horsebox locked away in a garage, barn or secure compound – Depending on the size of your vehicle it may not always be easy to keep it locked away securely, but if you do have the facility to do so then you should ensure that it is stored there when not in use. As well as providing a deterrent to potential thieves and slowing down or preventing those prepared to try, keeping your horsebox locked up in a garage, barn or compound can also help to lower your horsebox insurance costs.
2. Keep it out of sight of the main road – In many cases, horseboxes are targeted to be stolen simply because they have been spotted by would-be thieves from the road. One of your first lines of defence then should be simply to remove the vehicle from plain sight. Consider where the roads are in relation to your vehicle and then try to position it out of sight. That might mean simply parking it around the other side of your property, or it could mean positioning it behind a large tree, wall or other obstacle that will obscure it from view.
3. Fit a robust steering lock – If thieves succeed in obtaining access to the interior of your vehicle, that doesn’t have to mean that they’re going to succeed in driving away it. It’s worth investing in a high-quality heavy duty steering lock which will effectively render it undriveable. Even if the thieves have the tools to break the lock, which is quite likely, the lock will slow them down, which will cause them to make additional noise that may alert you or your neighbours to their presence. It may even encourage them to abort their attempt for fear of being caught.
4. For horse trailers, fit a hitch lock – With horsebox trailers there is a very real risk that thieves could simply drive up and tow your trailer away, particularly if you’re away on holiday or out at work. You can prevent them from doing so by fitting a ‘hitch lock’ that will block the hitch from being attached to a towbar. Though there are some quite economical hitch locks available on the market, it’s recommended that you go for a slightly more expensive one, as this will usually provided better protection and be harder to break.
5. Apply wheel clamps – If the wheels of your horsebox are locked in place, it’s not going anywhere. A number of lockable wheel clamps fitted to your vehicle are a simple but effective way of preventing theft and deterring thieves. There are a variety of styles of clamps available with a range of pricetags, and all share one thing in common – they stop the wheels from moving.
6. Consider a guard dog
The decision to bring an animal into your home should never be made lightly, whether it’s a pet or a working dog. But if you are confident that you can look after it, a guard dog can be one of the most effective deterrents against horsebox theft. As well as being physically intimidating to casual thieves, a guard dog can also alert you and your neighbours to the presence of thieves, allowing you to investigate the matter or call the police.
7. Install CCTV surveillance
Though CCTV won’t necessarily prevent the theft of your horsebox, it may make it more likely that the culprits will be apprehended and the vehicle recovered. Strategically placed and highly visible CCTV cameras can also act as an effective deterrent against thieves.
8. Fit an alarm
An audible alarm fitted to your vehicle and/or the building that it is stored in will immediately alert you to the presence of thieves. In most instances when the alarm sounds, the thieves will flee for fear of discovery. Although more sophisticated thieves may be able to disable the alarm system that you install, it will still serve to slow them down, and will help to prevent your horsebox from being seen as an easy target.
9. Equip your horsebox with a satellite tracking unit
Modern technology can help to quickly reunite you with your stolen horsebox. There are a number of different configurations of tracking unit available, but each of them emits a signal that will show the location of your vehicle which the police can use to track down the vehicle and potentially apprehend the thieves.
10. Erect warning signs
The point of many of these anti-theft precautions is that they act as a deterrent to thieves. Therefore it is essential that you publicise their use around your property as far as possible by erecting appropriate signs, such as ‘CCTV in operation’, ‘Beware: Guard dogs patrol these premises’, and ‘This vehicle is fitted with an alarm’. This approach may seem low-tech, but it has been used successfully for many years as a means of scaring off and deterring those who would otherwise trespass and steal.
You don’t necessarily have to take all these steps to secure your vehicle, but you should try to use a suitable combination of some of them which will act as a sufficient deterrent to would-be thieves.
If you need any advice about your horsebox insurance and how well it covers you against risks from thieves and other criminals, get in touch with Park Insurance. We can also give you guidance on steps that you can take to potentially reduce the costs of your horsebox insurance.