I Might Have Been A Hero But...

[Lenny HB]

This just puts me off aires more and more. Why do it?

Because they are far better suited to the nomad style of Motorhoming than camp sites, we don't don't see the point of using camp sites with a Motorhome.

You can get just as many break ins on camp sites, the municipal one at Chartres is well known for it.

 

[chaser]

I wonder statistically what proportion of motorhomes are broken into compared with houses that you are living in

 

[carolyn]

There's no point us getting a dog as I would be the one too scared to get back in the van, however we are off to Vanbitz tomorow to have alarms/Growler and solar fitted so I think this will be money well spent. i know nothing is totally safe but this is as good as it gets.

 

[wanderer]

Sorry dont quite understand what was stolen ? something from outside ? If you had a robbery why would you leave so early without reporting to the police and why haven,t you checked with other campers around for more breakins . Maybe the robbers were the vans that left early?

 

[greyman1]

there must have been something about those 2 vans that made them the chosen ones to the thieves instead of the other 8 !! any ideas JJ?

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[chaser]

there must have been something about those 2 vans that made them the chosen ones to the thieves instead of the other 8 !! any ideas JJ?

Probably no chains or visible alarms

 

[ojibway]

If you haven't tried aires, please think again , the people you meet and the sites you see all for nowt has just got to be tried to believe,

Far more fun on an aires.
I find campsites can be very boring and often much further out of town. (and not necessarily free of thieves!)
I might be a bit naive but I cannot think how anyone could get into my van without me knowing. The van (Sprinter conversion) has it's own intruder alarm plus I have a Strikeback alarm. I also have internal cab door locks and an external side door lock that I used to lock before entering through the cab door at night. I also have a loop alarm for the bikes. It sounds like a lot but only takes a few seconds to set up and, in fact, I don't even bother with the bike alarm any more. Just use several, sturdy locks.
We are both very tuned in to people who might try to distract us if we are sitting by the van - yes we have first hand experience of this. Never leave anything of value in sight or walk away leaving a door open.
Common sense!
m

 

[JJ]

Sorry dont quite understand what was stolen ? something from outside ? If you had a robbery why would you leave so early without reporting to the police and why haven,t you checked with other campers around for more breakins . Maybe the robbers were the vans that left early?

I understand they broke into the vans and took stuff.

We did check with other campers. We were told there had been robberies the weekend before too.

The vans that left early were the ones robbed.

I don't know why they left early... maybe to go to the police station.

JJ

 

[chaser]

I know this isn't really a security thread, but on our van you could have every lock known to mankind on the doors but no mention is ever made of windows that you could open with a pen knife, I could be in ours in about ten seconds, no noise no banging nothing.
You really should compare it to tenting, what security is there on them.

 

[gus-lopez]

Only way is to ensure van is locked ,camouflage yourself & sit outside all night with a shotgun !

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[Scattycat]

We hope! That the flashing alarm light in the windscreen would put would be scum trying to get into our van, but we also have an alarm cable through the cab arm rests and a heavy duty strap securing the habitation door.
But at the end of the day if someone really wants to break in then they probably will. Door alarms, special locks and all the rest of the security gizmos folks fit are just a deterrent put in place to hope the scrote moves on to the next van

 

[Barclaybasher]

But at the end of the day if someone really wants to break in then they probably will. Door alarms, special locks and all the rest of the security gizmos folks fit are just a deterrent put in place to hope the scrote moves on to the next van

Which is a good reason to fit one

..

 

[buttons]

In many years of motorhoming I have only been robbed twice. Once in southend on sea parked up a side street I lost a bike off the back of the van, they cut through the lock, I was in the van but didn't hear a thing.
Next was parked in a back street in La Estartit Spain I was asleep with the door open and someone came in and grabbed a case before I could get to my feet he was off like a whippet. Still that is only twice in 30 years so it is safe to camp.
I did have a very strange happening though in Spain I was parked in a dark car park and kept hearing noises outside so I went out and noticed some activity with men hovering around from vehicle to vehicle but not near me so I settled down again then noticed in the mirror a face looking around the back of my van. I went out again and chased him off. I had had enough by then and moved on as I just wanted a sleep. Anyway I was chatting to a local the next day he told me that carpark is well known for being the pick up place for gay men. Might have stayed if I had known that.

 

[mikekaren2]

Having decided to have a one night, mini trip away for Frankie's last holiday weekend, we ended up in this Aire...

View attachment 64492

I didn't sleep too well and was surprised to hear noises and movement in the very early hours of the morning from next door. I nearly pulled back my curtains to see what my neighbours were up to but then I thought that might be a tad nosy.

When I did get up, I found they had made a very early start and were gone.

It turned out that both the next door vans had been broken into and robbed during the night!

I now ask myself what would I have done had I pulled back my curtain and spotted the robbery taking place?

Earlier in the evening Frankie had asked me if she should bother to put her chain through the cab doors locking them shut and I replied "Definitely!

I don't feel any safer when parked up amongst a number of other vans on a "near town centre" aire than I do when on my own, in less formal stop over locations.

(Apparently more vans had been robbed here last weekend. The Police Station is only 150 metres away.)

JJ

Following an attempted enter our motorhome at cite Europe last August by an illegal ( while we were sat in it) Full story here http://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/forum/threads/strikeback-panic-alarm-urgent-please.90281/

I did give chase but afterwards I did wonder what if there were a group of lookouts waiting. So on reflection I now have one of these that I keep next to the door at night, the beauty is that if used in anger it should scare the #%+* out of the thief(s) & it would alert everyone on the Aire. I for one would not complain if I was woken at o light hundred if it prevented a break in on my MoHo.

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[Cobweb]

It beats me why anyone would take the risk of breaking into a Motorhome knowing that the occupants are inside .....and might be awake and be willing to fight and may even have a weapon . Surely there are easier targets to rob if that is your chosen profession .

Anyway . We woke up in our riverside aire rested and unmolested with our goods and chattels intact .Although we were harassed by some hungry hissing swans as we made our escape .

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[St Piran]

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I know this isn't really a security thread, but on our van you could have every lock known to mankind on the doors but no mention is ever made of windows that you could open with a pen knife, I could be in ours in about ten seconds, no noise no banging nothing.
You really should compare it to tenting, what security is there on them.

Just fitted these, won't stop them getting in but just might scare them away. Reason I fitted them was more to warn us if we are asleep in the van.

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