In November 2023 alone, no less than 9 vehicles were found in shipping containers thanks to Rental Tracker!
Theft and embezzlement are often mentioned under the same heading; “stolen vehicles”. But there is a difference; Theft occurs when someone unlawfully takes possession of a vehicle. When someone lawfully acquires possession of a vehicle, for example in the case of a lease, rental or test drive, but does not return the vehicle, we speak of embezzlement.
The RDW website contains current figures of stolen vehicles per category for the first half of 2024. What is striking about these figures is that the number of stolen passenger cars has decreased by 2% compared to 2022, but that the number of stolen commercial vehicles in the light to heavy categories has increased by no less than 6% to 44% respectively! Furthermore, the number of stolen passenger cars is still alarming: 2860 passenger cars compared to 884 commercial vehicles (828 light and 56 heavy commercial vehicles). The recovery rate for passenger cars is 41%, while for commercial vehicles in the light to heavy category is between 34% and 27%.
In practice, this problem is almost a weekly occurrence for us; We are frequently called by landlords who report a suspicion of embezzlement or theft of one or even more vehicles.
We have a lot of experience in this area and offer support in tracing the vehicle so that you can secure it as soon as possible.
Our numbers don’t lie; 95% percent of the vehicles are recovered thanks to our GPS solutions!
These are great figures, but what can you do as a company to increase the chance of recovery?
Below we give you some more important tips for a quick detection:
- We offer a wide range of GPS solutions, all of which have multiple and different functionalities. By means of GPS functionalities such as immobiliser, geofencing and real-time track & trace, you can act quickly and prevent your equipment from disappearing (completely out of sight).
- A correct installation administration is really crucial for detection! With our app you can easily and quickly keep a reliable installation administration. With this information you can easily find the vehicle in question later. See also our earlier blog: https://rentaltracker.nl/een-kloppende-inbouw-administratie-een-fluitje-van-een-cent/
- It is very important that the GPS trackers are installed in the right place and in the right way. If necessary, ask for support or advice regarding the installation of our GPS solutions. We can advise you on how to place or hide the GPS tracker(s) out of sight while maintaining optimal connectivity.
- Set up notifications (notifications/alerts) in your portal and get insight into the reports so that you are immediately aware of when a vehicle is “off track”. By means of notifications (notifications/warnings) in the portal, such as geofence and online/offline, and reports (printing out the necessary information of vehicles), you are quickly informed of when a vehicle “runs off the track” and you can quickly uncover possible theft or embezzlement. Notifications help quickly uncover possible theft or embezzlement. Check out our instructional videos: https://rentaltracker.nl/instructie-videos/ or ask us for advice or support.
- Monitor your fleet regularly. Through our user-friendly tracking portal and our efficient GPS products, you can register, monitor and secure your equipment. The sooner you notice that something isn’t right, the better. Unfortunately, we sometimes see that a company calls us when a vehicle turns out to be “offline” for six months and then we can do little.
- Report any suspicion of theft or embezzlement to us as soon as possible. Our team has a lot of experience in this field and can help you further locate the vehicle to the meter if necessary. If we receive a report of possible theft or embezzlement, we will do everything in our power to determine the current location of the car, motorcycle, camper, caravan or other object as quickly as possible. Just like law enforcement, even when there is no longer a GPS signal but the SIM card still has reception, we can often still determine the location. In this way, there is a good chance that your stolen equipment can still be traced.
- Report theft or embezzlement to the police as soon as possible and file a report. Make sure you have all the relevant information ready, such as the license plate, make, model, version, color and any unique features of the vehicle (e.g. damage). Also, share the last known location with the police. Reporting it to the police is important; It significantly increases the chances of the vehicle being recovered. The police will report your report to the RDW, which means that the license plate of your car will be registered as stolen.
- When the location of the missing vehicle is known; Check the make and color of the vehicle, but don’t be fooled by an incorrect license plate. If you find a vehicle of the same make and color, but the license plate is incorrect, the vehicle’s license plate may have been swapped. Inform the police of this suspicion.
- If the location of the vehicle is not known, keep an eye on the area where the vehicle was last seen; Often, stolen vehicles are temporarily parked nearby to be taken to another location later. Therefore, also check surrounding streets and parking lots.
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