You wouldn’t leave your house or car unlocked, so why risk it with your caravan?

It perhaps goes without saying, but you should always make sure you lock your caravan’s doors and windows before leaving it.

Regularly checking your locks work is also wise, as any broken or faulty ones will need replacing as soon as possible. You can also install additional over-locks that cover your standard locks for extra security—you can never be too careful.

The towing hitch

Your caravan’s towing hitch needs to be locked to stop thieves from hooking it to their car and driving off with it.

There are various caravan hitch locks on the market, as our in-depth blog explains, but the key things to remember are:

• make sure your hitch lock has a valid Sold Secure rating
• bright colours alone can sometimes be enough to deter a would-be thief

Wheels and alarms

As well as a hitch lock, your caravan also needs a wheel lock (sometimes also referred to as a wheel clamp) to stop the wheels from unwanted movement. These should also have a Sold Secure rating.

Caravan alarms are also a great theft deterrent. The best alarms:

• use passive infra-red sensors to detect any movement inside
• use tilt sensors to detect any movement of the caravan itself

Though these additional accessories can come at a high cost, you’ll thank yourself in the long term. After all, it works out far cheaper than having to completely replace a stolen caravan.

Out-of-season storage

Whether it’s not yet caravan season, or you’re just not using it, your caravan needs to be kept secure when in storage.

If you store your caravan away from home, you should choose a location with CCTV and gates that are locked 24/7.

If you’re lucky enough to have caravan storage space at your home, you should:

• lock it to a security post
• park up nose first to the house
• remove all the valuables from inside
• leave the curtains open with no contents in sight

All of these steps will help to deter opportunist thieves.

Caravan and property marking

VIN Chip kits are another essential caravan security device.

If your caravan is fitted with a VIN chip (all caravans manufactured from 2016 onwards will have a basic one), the police will be able to trace your recovered caravan back to you if it’s stolen.

A VIN chip kit uses markings containing a caravan’s unique CRiS number (Central Registration & Identification Scheme). You can buy chip packs for older caravans that don’t have them fitted as standard.

Your VIN chip sticker should always be displayed in the caravan’s windows.

Tracking devices

A caravan tracking device is the last line of theft defence. In fact, installing an approved tracking device might even lower the cost of your caravan insurance premiums.

Once fitted, you should display a warning sticker in your caravan’s window. This, too, can deter thieves.

Specialist caravan insurance from Ripe Caravans

There’s no denying that caravans are a huge target for thieves, and regardless of how hot you are on security, it could all be rendered worthless without having the right insurance in place.

At Ripe Caravans, our specialist caravan insurance covers your caravan up to the value of £75,000 (for tourers) and £175,000 for statics. You can also choose to include additional cover to protect your contents and awnings.

Not only that, but we also offer public liability and free accidental death cover (for tourers) up to £10,000. Coupled with our very own Ripe Guarantee, our policies ensure you won’t find the same level of cover for a better price anywhere else on the market.

Learn more about our specialist caravan insurance, and get a bespoke online quote today.