If the crook doesn’t like the look of your quad bike, or doesn’t believe he can make a quick buck from selling it on, he is less likely to take it in the first place. Who steals a 2001 Datsun Sunny when it’s parked next to a 2013 Aston Martin? Think how you can make your farming equipment less attractive to any would-be thief? Take positive steps that subconsciously shout-out, “that’s my quad bike- hands off!”
Yes, you can buy extremely complex vehicle immobilizers and high-tech satellite tracking devices (type ‘Thatcham security standards’ in your computer search engine to see how) to help prevent theft but this increases your capital expenditure and can only provide part of the solution. In the first instance, I advocate taking low cost and simple measures to dissuade people from helping themselves to your property. Measures like engraving your post code in prominent places, signwriting your farm name or telephone number on exposed body panels or simply spot welding your favourite shape on the vehicle chassis. Essentially, create a visual mark that makes your property unique and quickly recognizable.
As my grandad used to say, “In the good-old-days we used to brand our horses so no one nicked them and, if they got caught, we’d hang-em!” Well, I’m not suggesting we bring back capital punishment for nicking a tractor but I do believe there is something in the idea of ‘branding’ your modern day cart horse. You can go as far as marking your property with commercially available security marking solutions like Datadots® which is polyester micro-dots the size of a grain of sand with unique laser etched information such as a registration number or farm name. This creates a forensic DNA that enables identify the machines and the authorised owner.
The question you need to ask yourself is, ‘what do I want from my farming equipment?’ If you see yourself as a temporary custodian and will be looking to sell it on after a few years then you need to be careful how you mark your property so as not to devalue it and prevent a sale. If however, you buy it for life-time use then be bold and consider customizing it so it become one of a kind; unmistakably your and something that would be considered out of place anywhere else.
If you choose to customise or overtly mark your equipment, be sure not to alter the qualities of the commercially installed safety devices or negate the terms of your manufacturer’s warranty. Theft prevention strategies should never introduce unacceptable risks to the health of you or those who operate the machinery. Additional vehicle marking advice can be found on the Construction Equipment Security And Registration (CESAR) scheme website and from the Plant & Agricultural National Intelligence Unit (PANIU). To help you to actively protect your vehicles and to limit the effects of theft on your business, the NFU Mutual offer generous security discounts when an approved security device is fitted to your agricultural vehicles.
Finally, my overwhelming message is to do something that deters the thief from removing your property to make a quick buck. If you choose to brand your equipment then take a digital photograph and add it to your equipment register – a picture paints a thousand words.
*Frank Cannon is a security specialist with over 30 years’ experience in safeguarding people and property across the globe.
Published in Farmers Weekly, 1st February, 2016
