Factory security, independent locks, alarm detection, internal protection, external repair shielding and owner awareness each protect against different stages of an attack.
Factory security, independent locks, alarm detection, internal protection, external repair shielding and owner awareness each protect against different stages of an attack.
Multiple layers of security for vans, to give the best protection possible against tool theft, is really important, as different security products offer different benefits that no single security product can offer.
In this picture you will see that a thief has made a high level of destruction attack to the new 2024 shape Ford Custom van, where they have managed to bypass the deadlock by snapping the barrel from it, and they have made a large hole through the outer door skin in the area where the factory fitted latch / central locking mechanism is, to attack the latch and get past the factory security.
The thieves did NOT manage to get into this van for all of their efforts.
Did the thieves manage to get into the van? Can we repair the van the same day so that the tradesman can return to work? What makes thieves think that they can go around attacking vans like this? It’s Monday morning and there is a surprise at Sussex
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In contrast, here is the same model Ford Custom 2024-onwards van that had deadlocks fitted but did not have any Stealth Shields fitted. Unfortunately, the thieves were able to get past the deadlock and then made a hole where the factory latch / central locking mechanism is, and with only the factory Ford shield to protect the latch, the thieves were able to open the door and steal the contents of the van.
This means that both security products are doing different jobs and providing different security benefits. The Stealth Shields for the Ford Custom van are our number one security recommendation to buy before deadlocks, but we also recommend buying deadlocks too if it’s within your budget.
The Stealth Shields for the Ford Custom van give additional protection to the manufacturer’s weak point that is currently being exploited by thieves, where they push a screwdriver through the thin metal of the van door in order to break the latch / factory central locking unit, which will then allow the door to open. The factory latch has been designed to hold the door closed, and the door has been reinforced in the area where the latch is to keep it strong. The latch connects to the hoop on the C-pillar of the van bodywork, and the metal around that point has also been reinforced by the manufacturer of the van to be strong. On the Ford Custom vans they have factory deadlocking that is wired directly into the latch, so if you double lock your van, all of the cables inside the door become redundant and won’t pop the door open if thieves fish at the cables to try to pull on them. This leaves the weak point of the actual latch itself where thieves attack, which is a relatively small area to protect. There is a factory fitted security shield, but that has proved to be very ineffective at stopping thieves breaking into the van. By adding a Stealth Shield with wrap-around features to deflect angled attacks, and with a strong structure on the face — like the Stealth Shield manufactured by Sussex Installation Team Ltd, which is triple-layer / 6mm thick in the most vulnerable places — you significantly reduce the chance of thieves being able to break the plastic latch to release the door.
To give you an idea of how strong the securing point where the manufacturer’s latch is, and how effective it is at keeping the door closed, the image above shows a van that was subjected to a horrific brute-force attack with crowbars. This van had both a deadlock and our Stealth Shield fitted inside the side load door, and you can see that the metal where the deadlock was fitted had given up due to the brutality of the attack, but you can also see that the factory latch, being protected by our Stealth Shield, had not been overcome by the brute-force attack, and the thieves didn’t manage to get into the van to steal the contents. Although, unfortunately, the damage caused to the van was well beyond the scope of what could be repaired using our repair shields.
A more likely amount of damage from a thief attacking the latch / central locking mechanism would be a small screwdriver-shaped hole, or even a large hole like in the image above.
We can then repair the damage using a repair shield, either in a brushed stainless steel finish, a matte black powder-coated finish, or painted to the colour code of the van as above.
Manual deadlocks are an additional lock that is completely separate from the factory locking of the van. This means that even if a thief manages to get past the factory locking of the van, the doors will not open straight away, as the deadlocks provide another layer of defence. This is especially important in the day and age we are living in, with electronic hacks, remote signal jamming, key cloning and relay attacks, as no matter what sophisticated technology a thief is using, they will not manage to electronically unlock manual key-operated deadlocks.
See how deadlocks compare to hook locks and slamlocks →
Having an alarm system that will detect attacks to the load area of the van is very important. Certain attack methods, like peel-and-steal attacks, might not be detected by a standard alarm system, so it’s important to make sure that your alarm system has a load / cargo area PIR detector, microwave detector(s) or load area ultrasonic sensors fitted.
In addition to this, you may also consider adding a high position pin switch to the side load doors for an early warning of a peel-and-steal type of attack, shock sensors / warn-away shock sensor(s), or full alarm reaction shock sensor(s) fitted to the rear of the van. You may also consider an alarm with the ability to give you real-time alerts of warn-away or full alarm detection via an app or via a direct phone call.
This multi-strategy approach to van security is not new advice from me, although the actual products that I recommend can vary over time, as different attack methods trend, or depend on what make and model of van you have and what the specific manufacturer’s weak points are.
But the news story that I wrote on the 7th September 2018, with the principles below, is still 100% the best current advice for van security tool theft:
Read the original news article (7.11.2018) →
This is a video demonstration of different security products that we fitted to a Ford Transit Custom van at our workshop in Eastbourne.
Read context and full transcript →These extracts are from genuine five-star Google reviews.
★★★★★"They fitted the Platinum package to my van, hook locks, stainless steel plates to back barn doors and sliding side door, with an update to the existing alarm system with a sensor to detect movement in the back of the van."
T Jackson L Bishop · Google review, July 2022
★★★★★"Had internal and external shields fitted. My racking was in the way, but they managed to work around it and even put it back together for me."
Karol N · Google review, 2025
★★★★★"Had the platinum package 2 years ago, after talking with Charlotte decided to add side door and rear door exterior plates and inner lock guards. Also had the alarm neon fitted in the cab."
Pete Lewis · Google review, August 2021
Review wording has been lightly shortened for display without changing its meaning. Full reviews remain available on the Sussex Installations Google Business Profile.
One layer of security might be enough to stop a thief looking for an easy break in, but having layers of security gives you the best chance of slowing down or stopping a more determined thief.
Firstly find out what the weakest / most frequent way that your model van is broken into and then secure that weak point, in 2026 this is typically the factory latch / central locking mechanism and can be protected by a Stealth Shield.
On the 2024 onwards Ford Custom van this is multi-layer thick Stealth Shields with wrap around features to be fitted to protect the factory latch / central locking in the side load doors, a lower latch Stealth Shield in the rear barn doors, deadlocks fitted to at least all load area doors and consider anti-peel and steal brackets and a pedal lock.
Each page preserves the original description, historical context and the full available transcript.
This is a video demonstration of the security products that we fitted to a Mercedes Sprinter 2016 van. We fitted an alarm system that operates from the Mercedes remote control with sensors in the cab and a load (cargo) area PIR de
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Please share with any van owners that you know! Lots of different van security options explained, deadlocks, surface mounted locks, OBD locks, alarms, alarm sensors and more. This is a comprehensive overview of many products that
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WOW! This Ford Custom alarm disarmed from the driver's door barrel. Please help us to SHARE this with every FORD TRANSIT CUSTOM owner so that they can check their alarm before it's too late for them as this Ford Custom owner lost
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In this exclusive video you can see how Van Security Expert Jeff Scott tests the security of the All New Ford Transit Custom. Sussex Installations are the van security experts and Director Jeff Scott examines the physical componen
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The Ford security software update (along with many vans now having higher security driver's door barrels) has meant that thieves are less likely to be able to unlock the load area of the Ford Custom van or Ford Transit van by twis
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This is a demonstration of the different security products that we have fitted to make up our Ford Transit Custom Platinum Package to help secure your Ford Custom van from being broken into and having your tools / cargo stolen. Fi
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Please share with Tradesmen and Van Owners, it's completely free to use and could save many tradesmen's and other van owners livelihoods. I am very proud to announce the arrival of my newest born, called VaVoid App! The VaVoid app
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Deadlocks, Armaplate and a Thatcham-approved alarm fitted together to the same Mercedes Vito — each layer covering a different stage of an attack rather than any single product being sold as the whole answer.
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