Do you work in the construction industry? Most likely you either have a vehicle or a fleet that hauls around tools, equipment, and materials. Whether you have a pickup truck, van, utility body truck, or another vehicle, it’s a good idea to take precautions to prevent cargo theft.
The grim truth is that cargo theft is a huge problem in the construction industry. U.S. businesses lose up to $30 billion per year to cargo theft. Thieves like to target construction vehicles. Construction tools, equipment, and materials are easy for them to sell.
Do you or your employees haul around valuable cargo often? It’s worth investing into measures that prevent cargo theft.
How Cargo Theft Happens
Cargo theft largely happens because of human error. It’s common for drivers to forget to lock the doors or the toolbox. Sometimes drivers have to leave the cargo unattended while loading or unloading the vehicle. Thieves rely on human error for opportunities to steal the cargo, and sometimes the vehicle too.
These days, there are great technological innovations that help you combat cargo theft. Let’s discuss a few of them:
1. Safe Parking Apps
Did you know that over 85% of cargo theft occurs in unsecured parking locations? That’s why it’s important to always park in secure locations. That means finding a spot with:
- Good lighting
- Surveillance cameras
- Security officers, if any
If you have a fleet, instruct your drivers to only park in secure spots. There are some apps that will help you find the nearest secure parking spots on the go.
2. Vehicle Immobilization Technology
About 40% of all cargo theft involves vehicle theft too. Dealing with a stolen vehicle is quite a headache. You’d have to call the authorities, deal with the insurance company, and so on. The good news is there’s something that will help you stop a thief in their tracks while stealing your vehicle. It’s called vehicle immobilization technology.
The technology will enable you to remotely disable a stolen vehicle. So if a thief manages to steal your vehicle, you’ll get to disable the vehicle while they’re on the run. You’ll also get to see the location of the vehicle and direct the authorities to it.
3. PIN Number Locks
PIN number locks help reduce human error. Some PIN locks will automatically lock the doors as they’re closed. The driver would need to punch in the PIN to open the door. It’s a great deterrent against theft because thieves have no way of knowing the PIN. Yet, there are a couple of drawbacks to this solution:
- Let’s say you have a fleet, and you assign a PIN to each vehicle. Your drivers can forget the PIN assigned to the vehicle they’re using.
- Having to constantly punch in the PIN takes some time. In the construction industry, time is money. You have to keep hustling. So this may be a somewhat impractical solution.
Luckily, there’s a better solution: SEER.
4. SEER
SEER stands for Smart Entry Exit Recognition. It’s an advanced keyless entry system that can automate a lot of things on a vehicle based on the driver’s proximity. One of the things SEER can automate is the locks. You can even program it to lock and unlock the toolbox on your vehicle, if you have one. The way it works is:
- You (the driver) keep a tag on your keychain.
- SEER, which is installed on your vehicle, detects your proximity to the vehicle.
- SEER locks or unlocks the vehicle and/or electronic lock on your toolbox based on your proximity. For example, it locks the vehicle as you walk away from it.
SEER is a great way to prevent cargo theft because:
- It reduces human error. The vehicle will always be locked when the driver is away from it.
- SEER comes with advanced encryption technology. This makes it very difficult for a thief to hack into the system.
- SEER is very versatile. You can customize it to take extra security measures.
- This advanced tech will reduce stolen property, so it will most likely reduce your insurance premiums.
Learn more about SEER today! Check out this map of dealers that do SEER fleet installations.
Categories: Car Accessories