GPS tracking to find back your stolen car

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  • By Autoglas Concurrent
GPS tracking to find back your stolen car

GPS tracking is a great way to find your stolen car back. A SIM card sends a signal to a satellite so you can see exactly where your car is anywhere in the world. GPS tracking is useful when your car is stolen, but even better when you also take preventive measures. This way you can reduce the risk of car theft yourself by keeping an eye on a number of (small) things when you park your car.

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Can I install GPS tracking in my car?

Yes, GPS tracking can be installed in any car because it uses the OBD2 connection and is located in all cars. The tracker works on the power of the car itself. If the voltage drops, the internal battery takes over. If the thief tries to remove the tracker, you will immediately receive a message on the mobile device where the application is active.

 

Ways to reduce the risk of theft

In 2017, almost 9,000 cars were stolen in The Netherlands; on average, 24 cars a day were stolen. It is therefore wise to take more measures than just installing a GPS tracker to find a stolen car.

 

There are a number of things you can do to reduce the risk of car theft:

 

  • Make sure to properly close the car routine, including checking the doors;
  • Take valuables out of sight;
  • Make sure every burglar sees that there is nothing to fetch in your car;
  • Park the car in a place with lots of lights;
  • Park the car in a place where relatively many people can pass by;
  • Place an extra immobilizer in the car to make it more difficult for criminals;
  • Do you have a keyless entry key? Do not hang it at the front door as the signal can be picked up there. To block the signal you can store the key in a tin.

 

It is especially important to remove the opportunity and trigger. Is your car in a well-lit spot, does a potential burglar see no reason to break in and is the car properly locked? Then the risk of burglary is considerably lower than when your car is in an alleyway afterwards and an exclusive car radio and navigation system are clearly visible.

 

What if the car is stolen?

If your car is still stolen, GPS tracking makes it easy to find out where it is. You can pass this information on to the police - you don't go after the criminals yourself. In most cases, your car can be found in this way, usually with window damage because the burglars have gained access to the car in this way.

 

In almost all cases, they store one of the side windows. These are made of tempered glass which makes them relatively easy to destroy. The car window replacement is then the only option. However, it can also happen that you find the car 'stripped'. If the criminals have had enough time with your car to remove car parts to sell them, then of course you have considerably more work to restore the car to working order.

 

Can I use my insurance for this?

If your car has a third party fire and theft or comprehensive insurance, the insurer will reimburse you for the costs of the damage caused by the car theft. Insurers apply different rules that you will find in your policy. In almost all cases, the theft must be reported immediately to the insurer and the police. Please indicate that you have a GPS tracker in your car when you report this to the police. This increases the chance of finding your car many times.

 

If you make use of short lease via your employer, you do not have insurance for the car yourself. In this case, the insurer and your employer will be responsible for handling the damage. In the case of full operational short lease, the insurance policies are arranged via the lease company, which handles this itself with the insurer.

 

What happens if the car is not found?

If you do not have GPS tracking in the car, the chance that your car will be found is much smaller. By default, insurers wait 30 days until action is taken to pay compensation for cars that are stolen and not recovered. Here too, cover is possible for third party fire and theft or comprehensive insurance. The insurers offer four different constructions:

 

Revaluation scheme: You will receive the current value of the stolen car;
New value scheme: You will receive an amount that you can use to purchase the same model;
Purchase value scheme: You will receive the amount you paid for the (second-hand) car;
Equivalent car scheme: You will receive an amount that you can use to buy a similar car.

 

Since in all cases you will first be without a car for 30 days, installing a GPS tracking system is a better option. Especially if you also follow the tips to reduce the risk of car theft.