The popularity of the grey nomad lifestyle in particular – and RV ownership in general – is making luxury rigs a prime target for thieves.
While travellers have got to be increasingly security aware … so too do the multitude of caravan retailers in our towns and cities. A business in the Queensland town of Gympie has just had a caravan stolen from its yard near the Bruce Highway … the second time it has been targeted by thieves in a month.
On both occasions, caravans which retailed for about $50,000, were hitched to the back of a vehicle and driven away.
The first time the offenders struck at leisure vehicle specialist, GreenRV, they drove through the locked gate in a smash-and-grab style theft. On the latest occasion, they cut the locks during ttheir midnight raid.
The latest van to vanish was an unregistered 2011 model Supreme Caravan which was white with blue stripes and a rear aluminium tool box and a spare tyre on the rear bumper.
“We’ll be ramping up security with surveillance cameras, extra security patrols and increased lighting,” GreenRV owner Carl Green told the Gympie Times newspaper.
Australia has one of the highest rates of vehicle theft in the western world. It is estimated that about 500 or so touring caravans are reported stolen from around the country each year.
What security measures do you take to stop thieves driving off with your pride and joy? Have you ever had a rig stolen? Email us here with your thoughts on this story.
