Faced with an increasing number of thefts from enclosed trailers, more and more owners in Ontario are installing security devices such as GPS trackers. But as in a game of cat and mouse, the thieves adapt in turn and succeed in thwarting these additional measures.
During his 20 years in business, he became the owner of a trailer dealership Work trailersShane Thompson has never seen such a dramatic increase in the number of thefts from enclosed trailers.
Unfortunately, it’s become very common, especially in the last five or six years
This businessman says who Strathroyin the suburbs London.
We hear stories almost every week about people who have had their enclosed trailers stolen.
If they are often stolen, it is in particular because of their increased value. An enclosed trailer that was previously worth $3,000 is now worth $6,000
It is clear Shane Thompson.
To address this problem, owners use GPS trackers, which allow police to trace the thieves. But sometimes even these tools are not enough, as some owners learn to their dismay.
$4000 spent for nothing
Nicholas Waldram, who runs a gutter installation and repair business, is one of the unfortunate homeowners.
In September, one of his locked trailers in front of his business was stolen.
Mr Waldrum then purchased a replacement trailer, then spent $4,000 on security improvements recommended by police, including installing a GPS tracker.
Nicholas Waldrum invested $4,000 to protect his trailer, but it was still stolen.
Photo: Radio-Canada/Lunan Charpentier
Despite everything, his new trailer was also stolen on November 26.
In the hours that followed the truck left a commercial area south of… Londonthe GPS briefly indicated his location at Strathroy. But after a short while, the signal suddenly stopped.
The police never found her.
Battle at the forefront of technology
GPS trackers hidden in trailers are becoming less effective, with most thieves purchasing low-cost radio frequency detectors online from sites like Amazon, according to Shane Thompson.
These detectors can find and deactivate the tracker in just minutes.
People realize that targeting and stealing a locked trailer is easier than stealing a vehicle.
In response to the ownerWork trailers She equipped herself with a new tracking device to better fight the thieves. He is now dealing with the company KYCS.
KYCS specializes in recovering enclosed trailers.
Photo: Radio-Canada/Lunan Charpentier
The latter created a tracker the size of a deck of cards that hides in the same way as a GPS tracker, except that it transmits location data only briefly, at a specific time.
Therefore they are practically undetectable.
Their device also has an app that sends location data to the police once the theft is reported.
Mr. Thompson uses a device KYCS on all of its locked trailers and the strategy is starting to pay off: more than a dozen locked trailers have been stolen from it, and police have recovered all of them.
What is with youWork trailers It also sells appliances to its customers.
Enclosed trailers have become increasingly popular with thieves as their value has increased in recent years.
Photo: Radio-Canada
It’s easy to resell
He laments that once the trailers are stolen, they can easily be resold Shane Thompson.
He explains that the Ontario Ministry of Transportation does not require a serial number to register hand-built enclosed trailers.
People who want to register a trailer simply need to show identification, unless the trailer weighs more than 900kg when empty.
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The DIY trailer label was created for a small number of people who build their own trailers, but Thompson believes it is now a loophole that thieves can exploit.
If you steal an enclosed trailer, I can register it with the department as a craft trailer for you to own and sell it to you without you knowing it is a stolen trailer.
All of these factors made trailer theft a relatively low-risk way for criminals to enrich themselves, he said.
Enclosed trailers are becoming popular items for thieves because they cost more and more. Therefore, more and more are being stolen
He concludes.
With information from Lunan Charpentier and Andrew Lupton
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