Tool theft has soared in the last 12 months with more than a third of van drivers falling victim – up from a quarter the year before.
The data from Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles reveals the shocking rise in tool theft is costing workers billions in replacement tools and lost business.
The average value of equipment stored per van stands at £2,500, which means UK tradespeople are footing a £4.4bn bill for replacement tools every year.
On top of this, the downtime from stolen tools averages six days, causing UK businesses to lose £5.2bn annually.
The study also shows that an increase in the number of van drivers leaving tools in their vehicles overnight has created more opportunity for thieves. Three-quarters of respondents admitted to doing so compared to less than half in 2020. And just half of van drivers are taking extra precautions such as additional alarms, locks, and vehicle trackers.
While London remains the UK’s biggest tool-theft hotspot, the rate has reduced to 47% of van drivers from 55% in the previous year. That’s in contrast to Scotland (45%), the North West (41%) and North East (40%), which have recorded huge surges in tool theft in the past year. The South East is the area where van drivers are least likely to fall victim to a break-in.
The first step to protecting your vehicle is thinking about where you park it. Parking in a well-lit area or in a car park with CCTV will help reduce unwanted attention. Where this cannot be achieved or if you have more than one vehicle, parking them defensively – in other words, where doors are blocked by another vehicle or object – can be a good deterrent.
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles also offers a range of solutions to ensure vans remain protected, including an anti-theft alarm system that can be specified with interior monitoring, a back-up horn and tow-away protection. As part of its Working With You promise, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles also offers a variety of lockable racking solutions and storage boxes for expensive tools.
David Hanna, head of direct sales, said: “Tool theft continues to be a huge problem and it’s worrying to see the problem spreading across the country. We’re shocked to see that cases have risen so much in the past year, as we know the impact on businesses and workers is massive.
“Hopefully, these findings will prompt those with expensive equipment to take extra precautions, whether that’s additional security features on their vans, avoiding parking in secluded, poorly-lit areas, or taking an extra 15 minutes at the end of the day to unload their vans.”
