Caravan security involves using electronic or physical measures to deter malicious acts, prevent damage, and thwart theft. Such measures or equipment could include the use of trackers, wheel clamps, hitch locks and driveway bollards.

As thieves continue to develop new techniques to bypass factory-fitted security equipment, aftermarket vehicle security equipment is designed to function independently from your caravans factory-fitted equipment. This means that it is not affected by the latest methods employed by thieves to overcome factory-fitted security measures.

Here are some important measures to protect your caravan from theft:

1. Install additional aftermarket caravan security.

Many caravans nowadays come with insufficient security features, making them vulnerable to theft. Due to the advancement of digital theft techniques, manufacturers have struggled to keep up with emerging threats. To address this issue, caravan owners and fleet operators are turning to aftermarket caravan security solutions for protection.

Trackers - Modern caravan trackers are essential in recovering stolen caravans. Insurers often require the installation of these devices. Thatcham category S5 trackers, for example, offer 24/7 theft monitoring and automatic towing recognition. Installing a tracker like this can also lead to a reduction in insurance premiums. Some tracking systems can be configured to alert you to any unauthorised movement of your caravan through geofencing or GPS validation.

Clamps - Wheel and hitch clamps/locks are useful in making it difficult for thieves to steal your caravan. Using such security measures not only slows down thieves but also deters them from attempting theft in the first place.

2. Factory-fitted trackers (a false sense of security).

It's not recommended to subscribe or activate a factory-fitted tracker for your caravan, even if it comes with a new subscription. It's better to opt for an aftermarket tracker even if you are already subscribed to a factory-fitted service. Factory-fitted trackers are not ideal for real caravan security. Most of them are just standard hardware with a monitoring centre attached and advertised as factory-fitted trackers. Others are outdated and easily found by thieves. Manufacturers offer these factory-fitted trackers as a way to make more money, but they can be quite expensive for consumers compared to aftermarket options.

One of the main reasons to avoid factory-fitted trackers is that they are all fitted in the same place during production, making them easier for thieves to locate and disable. Thieves can easily find the position of your caravan's factory-fitted tracker and remove it. As a result, many vehicle insurers have stopped providing cover for vehicles with factory-fitted trackers, even if they are Thatcham-certified. Insurers have learned through costly experiences that factory-fitted trackers are too easy to find and disable, leading to significant pay-outs for "stolen not recovered" vehicles. Therefore, many insurers have now concluded that trackers must be installed in the aftermarket for increased security due to their randomisation and professional installation.

In addition to these concerns, dealership-fitted trackers present their own set of issues.

Dealership-fitted trackers -Depending on the vehicle manufacturer and dealership, they sometimes work with manufacturers of aftermarket vehicle security and offer customers the fitment of aftermarket trackers in-house at the dealership. Sounds good, doesn’t it? Your new caravan is fitted with a dealer-recommended and supplied aftermarket tracker and is installed by dealership technicians, what’s wrong with that?

Well, their day job isn’t aftermarket security installation, it’s the servicing of their caravan, they’re not professionals in the installation of aftermarket security equipment so you’re unlikely to receive the quality of installation expected from a vehicle security installation professional. As the inherent security of your vehicle relies upon the quality of the installation of your tracking system (how hard it will be to find by thieves if stolen) it is the most important aspect of having a tracking system installed, if it's installed poorly then there wasn’t much point in fitting it at all. If your vehicle is ever stolen a poorly installed tracking system will be found and removed in quick time, resulting in a lot of disappointment, wasted time, and wasted money.

Installation of aftermarket equipment at the dealership means they must also follow strict installation procedures and use connection methods that would otherwise be seen as compromising the covertness of the installation by industry professionals. Dealership technicians also usually follow specifications for the connection and positioning of the tracker provided by the aftermarket manufacturer/supplier, so as with factory-fitted trackers they are likely to be found again in the same locations (model specific).

Therefore, it’s also not recommended you have your tracker installed at the dealership either unless you do your research, ask, and find that an external third-party vehicle security installation professional comes into the dealership to perform their installations, this is the case from time to time as most dealership service departments are usually inundated with their own workload.

Conclusion -

To conclude, it’s wise to invest and install some form of aftermarket vehicle security product in your caravan. With the development of modern digital theft techniques, most modern caravan factory-fitted security features are inadequate leading to an increased risk of theft and failed recovery. For peace of mind, theft prevention and recovery capabilities, the installation of an aftermarket tracker and various types of physical/visual clamping/locking equipment is recommended to prevent modern theft methods but installed by an industry professional, not a dealership unless they use external industry professionals to carry out this type of work.

Electronic Security

We would always recommend you consider installing a Thatcham category S7/S5 caravan tracker, doing so will enable a timely and professional, police-backed response to recovery in the event your vehicle is stolen. Find out more in the ‘Caravan Trackers’ section of our FAQ’s

Wireless backup caravan tracker. The installation of a secondary tracker for extra security and peace of mind is also a good choice. Using a wireless battery-powered tracker enables the device to be installed in even more covert locations on your vehicle, requiring no hardwiring they can be positioned in locations not normally accessible for hardwired devices such as underneath the vehicle or behind exterior panels where vehicle wiring is non-existent. With it being a secondary backup tracker, it can be used to continue tracking a stolen vehicle if the main tracker is lost and provides further resistance to jamming.

Physical deterrents

Installation of clamping and locking equipment to the wheels and hitch point is highly recommended, not only will these types of security measures help slow down would-be thieves, but they may also ward them off completely by making your caravan too much of an effort to attempt to steal.

Driveway bollards are another good addition to caravan security at home. They’ll prevent thieves from simply driving straight of your driveway in the event their able to steal your vehicle for whatever reason. Driveway bollards for caravan security come in many shapes and configurations, generally, you’ll find them as fold-down surface-mounted or assisted-manual lift posts. They can also contain smart technologies for automated lifting and lowering in the presence of your vehicle using a motorised mechanism.

Secure storage: While many caravans are stored at purpose-built secure gated sites, thefts from these premises still occur. Many of these sites operate a simple SMS message-type service to allow you to gain access to the site and open the sliding gates. Thieves can get hold of this information and easily slip into one of these secure storage facilities, hitch up your caravan, and tow it away. It’s not overly common, but it can and is done every year to many caravans up and down the country. Extra security measures are an absolute must. Most tracking systems let you set up a geo-fence, so you could easily set one up at your storage facility to be alerted if your caravan leaves the site without your knowledge.

 While physical caravan security upgrades do work, it's a common theme that they are normally inconvenient and cumbersome. Wheel and hitch locks for instance need to be locked, unlocked, and then stowed away every time you want to tow your caravan. Whilst driveway bollards only provide security when your caravan is at home and unless you have the budget for an automated system, they’ll normally require the need for manual operation of multiple posts every time you leave and enter your driveway.

Therefore, we would recommend the installation of a hardwired Thatcham tracker and a secondary wireless battery-powered tracker to go alongside it for caravan security upgrade purposes. However, it must be said that physical deterrents do serve well as visual deterrents by making your caravan look far less attractive when fitted with both a wheel and hitch lock whilst also being behind driveway bollards or stored at a purpose-built secure storage site.

If your insurer has asked for a caravan tracker to be fitted to your vehicle, they’ll normally request a Thatcham-approved, professionally monitored tracker. Even if you do not require a caravan tracker for insurance purposes it’s still advised to install a professionally monitored tracker.

‘Thatcham Approved’ products are products that have been independently tested by Thatcham. The certification provides reassurance around the functionality, design, performance, and compliance (legislative and automotive quality standards). Thatcham has created the compliance criteria for two Categories of Stolen Vehicle Tracking, Category S7, and Category S5.

We’ll explain the difference between the two categories below.

Thatcham Category ‘S7’

Thatcham Category S7 trackers are the most common trackers requested by insurers for caravans. These trackers provide location data and other important features such as driving behaviour monitoring. They are connected to a monitoring centre that operates 24/7/365 with trained personnel who are alerted when the tracker detects any suspicious activity. If any alerts are generated, the monitoring centre will immediately contact the owner of the vehicle.

Thatcham S7 caravan trackers usually come with features like vehicle battery disconnection detection and geofencing, however, some feature automatic tow-away alerts too. Furthermore, the tracking unit has an in-built backup battery that enables it to remain operational even when its power supply is removed.

In the event of a theft, the owner of the vehicle in most cases would need to report the incident to the secure control room by phone. The personnel will then liaise with the police to aid in the recovery of the stolen vehicle.

Thatcham Category ‘S5’

Thatcham Category S5 caravan trackers are not very common as this type of product normally features automatic towing recognition and requires the vehicle to have an ignition circuit which caravans lack. Moreover, insurers generally only request Thatcham category S7 for caravans. However, some vehicle security brands take their category S5 products and simply re-categorise them as S7 just to capture this market. Look out for caravan trackers with an ID tag and automatic towing recognition as these products are far superior to there ‘normal’ S7 counterparts for caravan applications.

For more information on this please get in touch with us directly so we can advise on the best product.

 Category S5 caravan trackers (categorised as S7 but with an S5 feature set) consist of a tracking unit and automatic towing recognition technology which provides fast proactive alerts to any unauthorised vehicle movements.

Towing recognition technology is used to confirm that the person attempting to tow the caravan is authorised to do so. In most cases, this is done by use of a small battery-powered tag that is usually attached to the vehicle's key or carried by the driver.

Once the caravan begins moving, the tracking unit scans to find the signal from the tag. If the tag is detected, then the system sees that an authorised person is present. However, if the tracking device fails to detect the towing recognition tag, an alert will be sent to the monitoring centre where the owner of the vehicle will receive a phone call to check if a theft has taken place. The monitoring team will then liaise with the police on the ground to recover the vehicle quickly.

Compared to regular S7 systems, caravan trackers that include a tag or automatic towing recognition are much more user-friendly and secure. With regular S7 caravan trackers, a switch is typically installed inside the caravan. When you want to tow the caravan, you need to move this switch to the "on" position to tell the system you intend to tow your caravan. When you reach your destination, you must remember to turn the switch off. If the switch is left in the "off" position and the caravan is moved or towed, the system will generate an alert. This process can be a hassle, and forgetting to toggle the switch as needed can result in false movement alerts. Additionally, if a thief is familiar with your system, there is a risk that they could simply turn the switch to the "on" position and steal your caravan without triggering an alert. The security around this approach depends on only you know what the switch inside the caravan does and how to operate it.

S7 caravan trackers that include a tag for automatic towing recognition do all the above but without any interaction from the vehicle owner. This means that the process we just described all happens automatically. In a scenario where a thief hitches up your caravan and starts to move it, the caravan tracker uses GPS to detect the movement. If the caravan is in motion, the tracker then checks for the towing recognition tag, which is typically attached to your towing vehicle's key. If the tag is found, the system knows that an authorised person is towing the caravan. If the tag is not found but the caravan is still moving, an alert is sent to the monitoring centre. You will receive a phone call from them shortly after your caravan starts moving without the tag present. As you can see, this entire process is automated, from detecting authorized or unauthorised towing to alerting the monitoring centre and yourself. We highly recommend a system like this for caravan applications, as it enhances the user-friendly experience.

Stand-alone wireless battery-powered caravan trackers

 These types of trackers are great at supplementing your main hardwired tracking system, combining them both ensures you have flexibility within your security installation, look out for a system that combines both a hardwired ‘main’ tracking system with a wireless device. Please see our ‘Wireless battery-powered trackers’ page for more information.

When it comes to electronic or physical caravan security upgrades, comparing their ease of use, cost, range of use, and effectiveness is a good place to start.

All in all, electronic caravan security products normally win out in nearly all aspects other than cost. Although deterrents such as driveway bollards and gates can be considerably more expensive than any electronic security system available in the aftermarket.

Electronic caravan security systems such as trackers and immobilisers offer customers real benefits in terms of theft prevention. These electronic systems are simple to use, are reasonably priced and follow you around wherever you go. Their also very good at preventing caravan theft by modern theft techniques.

Physical caravan security deterrents such as wheel clamps, hitch locks, and driveway bollards offer customers good visual deterrence to potential thieves, something that electronic caravan security systems lack by their very nature as they are intended to be secretive. Caravan wheel clamps, hitch locks, and driveway bollards can deter thieves from even having a go at stealing your vehicle whilst electronic security may invite thieves to at least cause some damage. Whilst physical deterrents for caravan security have their advantages they have their disadvantages too, wheel clamps and hitch locks are cumbersome to operate, move and stow away, whilst driveway bollards need constant manual operation. Driveway bollards also only provide any security increase whilst your vehicle is at home so doesn’t do anything for caravan security once you leave your driveway or storage facility.

In conclusion, there’s no harm in mixing electronic and physical deterrents for improved caravan security but it’s advised to install your electronic caravan security first. Due to the nature of electronic security installation with it intended to be installed professionally and covertly, it's not advised to display any stickers or the like to advertise the fact to would-be thieves that you have for instance, a tracker. Instead of thieves being in the dark as to what might potentially be fitted to the caravan, if you display anything to tell them you have those systems fitted then they will almost certainly look for and try to remove them. Not displaying or advertising this would keep thieves guessing as to whether they’d be wasting their time even trying to steal your caravan if it potentially might have such systems fitted.

With that being said, a caravan not displaying any indication of any aftermarket security upgrade may seem attractive to thieves, this is where physical deterrents such as wheel clamps, hitch locks, driveway bollards, and even dash cams could be used.

Its simple!

1. Select the product you wish to have installed and either add it to your bag or go straight ahead and purchase it.

2. Once purchased Specialised Trackers UK will contact you that same day to arrange a date and time for your installation.

3. And that's it, your installation engineer will carry out the installation on the agreed-upon date and time.

4. If you need your vehicle security product for insurance purpose, such as a tracker, once your product has been installed you will automatically receive your ‘proof of installation certificate’ via email. This is the important document your vehicle insurer will be needing to prove the product has been fitted. Simply forward this on to your insurer once you receive it,

5. Your all set and now insurance compliant.