Electrician Gets His Stolen Tools Back
0:00 -Got his tools back after they were stolen by thieves.
0:01 -Hi, I'm Jeff from Sussex Installations.
0:03 -Today's video, it's about Ford Transit Mark 8 that's broken into, but a bit of a success story.
How Thieves Drilled Into Will's Van
0:08 -The tradesman did have his tools stolen, but he did get some of them back.
0:13 -Well, what happened to your van?
0:13 -I can see that there's a big hole in the side of your van.
0:17 -Yeah.
0:17 -So, we've been doing work in Camden.
0:18 -I was parked in a public car park opposite site and one of the guys went out to the van.
0:24 -No, he went into the back doors, noticed that things had just been chucked everywhere.
0:28 -Went out and had noticed the van door had actually been drilled.
0:30 -Um, all my power tools have been stolen.
0:32 -Fortunately, the thieves didn't know what they were looking at in the back of the van, so they didn't actually get a lot of gear.
0:41 -Um, but overall, the thing that was most state was it was all my tools and was my power tools and my tool boxes.
0:45 -Um, however, I'm on Instagram.
How Will Got His Tools Back
0:47 -I've got my stickers all over all my gear.
0:50 -And I got a message day or two later saying, "You've left your toolboxes in my street.
0:56 -" Um, I responded to the guy and I went and picked them a few days later.
Why the Thieves Dumped the Toolboxes
0:59 -Um, fortunately um, good Samaritan had taken them in and well fortunately the thieves had gone through their tools, left the tool boxes in case there was trackers in them outside of this guy's house.
1:11 -So he just took them inside his house, kept them for me.
1:16 -I picked them up, got my toolboxes back.
1:17 -I haven't got the power tools, but it's a start and, you know, makes it a little bit a little bit easier, I guess.
1:26 -Yeah.
1:26 -So you've kind of they've taken some key tools from there, but like you know how it is.
1:30 -You sort of build up a lifetime of like you know like little tools little bits for like jobs like even if it's like a special screwdriver you know or a little like all these little bits and I guess what thieves might do sometimes is just end up chucking that lot in the bin and you'll never see it again.
How an Instagram QR Code Helped Recover the Tools
1:43 -But because of you having the Instagram profile on your on your toolbox, it's actually been returned to you like a lot of lot smaller tools than you to box.
Why the Small "Odds and Sods" Tools Matter
1:51 -I've managed to gain back all of my like odds and ends that I'd never want to buy again cuz you may only use them once a year and they're not worth the money to buy them back again.
2:00 -But when you have them, they're handy.
2:02 -Those tool boxes were full of just kind of odds and sods of stuff that I use.
2:06 -Yeah.
2:06 -Once every few months.
2:08 -So, it's quite nice to have gained them back.
2:10 -As much as I've lost the bulk of it, I can get them back.
2:14 -It's just the things that you don't always use, you don't always need.
2:15 -All the different types of marking of toolboxes.
Different Ways to Mark and Identify Tools
2:18 -I think like you hear like smart water and like coded water where you can like you can have a code on your toolbox and you can have that code registered on a like a third party platform with your details where it can perhaps be identified back to you.
2:31 -[Music] Some people going to write their name on their toolbox which kind of works if you're on a building site with honest people doesn't it?
2:35 -You know, wheels drill, you know, like you know, they're not going to get it muddled up, but it's not going to return the drill to like if this is like a direct like I guess [Music] um you're not going through a third party like identifying Smart Water.
2:51 -You've just literally got your Instagram profile on your toolbox and it's been returned to you.
2:54 -So, I think that's that's brilliant.
2:57 -It's just a simple idea that if they leave it behind, then it's easily identifiable.
3:00 -It's, you know, if they were to be stolen and they pull the sticker off, you lose that.
3:04 -But you rely on them not wanting something and leaving it behind and then that's how you get your tools back.
3:11 -And it was just literally that having that QR code there and it got Will's toolbox returned to him.
3:17 -Yeah.
3:17 -So, that's great.
3:17 -Will, thank thanks so much for telling us about your experience.
3:20 -I think that's a really handy tip um about the Instagram on the toolbox and it wasn't necessarily intention as a security device.
3:25 -It just completely accidental.
3:27 -Just a bit of luck that you'd end up left a sticker on your toolbox which could identify yourself.
3:33 -So, that's a great tip for anyone there.
3:35 -I think get your Instagram profile on your toolboxes.
3:39 -Yeah, why not?
3:40 -Um, how about the situation with the van?
Working With a Badly Damaged Van
3:41 -So, there's there's a hole in the van and you're you've not been able to lock your van cuz the latch is broken.
3:48 -No, I've had to have my door ratchet strapped shut for the past few days and park into tight corners or even avoiding taking the van out.
3:54 -Um, just as you know, you now can't secure your van.
3:57 -You can't secure everything in the back of it.
4:00 -We took the moment that it all happened, we took all the other power tools and testers off of the van, but unfortunately, you still got work.
4:06 -You still need tools on the van.
4:07 -It's the whole point of having a van.
4:09 -Um, so it's been a bit of a battle, but fortunately, we're getting sorted out by you, and hopefully we have this van back to normal as a van repair today, on the side load door.
Jeff Inspects the Van Break-In Damage
4:22 -Big like, a hole, messy kind of bit of bodywork here where they've made sort of multiple holes to attack the latch mechanism which is like the factory lock that keeps the door in a closed position.
4:31 -So what we'll be doing is we'll be fitting an external shield on that.
4:34 -We'll be fitting internal shield.
4:36 -We'll be fitting deadlocks upgrading the security on this van.
4:39 -So yeah, stay tuned.
Repairing the Damage With a Security Shield
4:39 -Check it out.
4:42 -So what we've done to the van is we have fitted first off an external repair shield.
4:47 -This is our OG.
4:47 -Yeah, OG.
4:47 -We're saying it.
4:50 -We're going with it.
4:50 -The original goat cuz that's what we are.
4:51 -OG external shield covering up the damage.
4:56 -The matte black looks very nice on this van.
4:57 -Really nice looking van with the with kind of black trims on it.
Protecting the Factory Lock With Stealth Shields
4:59 -And the matte black actually looks very much in keeping with the van as well.
5:03 -The bit you don't see on the inside where that latch was broken into.
5:06 -We fitted our internal stealth shield that's got wraparound features on it.
5:09 -And that means that it's giving protection against people trying to attack this uh latch from angles.
5:15 -So that's really important these days.
5:17 -Our external repair shield also has one of our stealth caps on the inside which is really useful.
Double Hook Deadlocks for the Side Door
5:22 -Now our stealth shield goes inside the door to help protect the factory lock in which also this external repair shield is also helping to protect the factory locking.
5:32 -However, if someone does get past the factory lock in, opens up the door a little bit.
5:36 -We've also fitted our deadlocks.
5:37 -Two deadlocks, two hook deadlocks on this door.
5:39 -One up high, one down low.
5:41 -And that's given an additional reinforcement point of the door.
5:43 -An additional layer of security that's completely independent from all the electronic uh locking of this van.
5:48 -In order to get this van open, you'd need to then take off the deadlocks.
5:56 -Might have to just take the weight of the door off of this lock and then the door can be opened as usual.
6:02 -Hook deadlock.
Anti-Peel Bracket Protection
6:02 -It hooks into the bracket which we fitted there on the post.
6:07 -On the inside this door, a peel and steel bracket.
6:09 -What that is doing is it's given an additional securing point of the front on the top edge of the door.
6:15 -So, as well as the factory securing points on the van, we're also given additional securing points with the deadlock and with a peel and steel bracket in case someone was trying to pull on the top of this door like in a peel and steel type of attack.
Rear-Door External and Internal Security Shields
6:25 -On the barn door, similar thing, we fitted our external um OG shields to the outside of the van.
6:33 -Even though this didn't actually have a hole in the barn door, we fitted one.
6:36 -Customers decided just go for it, put it on there in the first place.
6:40 -We've also fit our stealth shield on the inside of this van, given additional layers of security.
6:43 -So, it's not just the external shield, it's the external shield plus the door and then our internal stealth shield as well before it can of anyone can get out that latch mechanism.
Twin Hook Locks for the Rear Barn Doors
6:53 -Same thing on the back here.
6:55 -Two additional deadlocks securing the door as an additional layer of security, completely separate from the manufacturer's locking system.
Cab-Door Deadlocks and OBD Port Protection
7:01 -So if someone does manage to get past the factory lock in anyhow, the deadlocks will still stop the door from opening.
7:11 -Deadlocks on the cab as well.
7:11 -So deadlocks all around.
7:14 -And then what the customers also had is thinking if someone was to try and steal the van itself.
7:21 -He's got our OBD protector, our lock box for the OBD port just to make it more difficult in case someone was trying to like quickly plug in a scan tool to code keys into this van to steal it and drive it away.
Will Sees His Secured Van
7:31 -Well, at the end of the day, you've been hanging around Eastbourne for a few hours, but we've got your van repaired.
7:36 -We've got your van secured, and you're you're you're good to go.
7:39 -What do you think?
7:41 -Over the moon, mate.
7:41 -It's brilliant.
7:42 -I'm happy to finally have that hole gone, and uh happy to now be able to park up.
7:47 -Also, we had to change the actual forward latch that was inside your door, as well as fitting the shield and the extra security.
The Aftermath of a Van Break-In
7:52 -That forward latch was broken and the door wasn't closing.
7:55 -So, we've we actually have them in stock because this happens a lot, unfortunately.
7:59 -Um, which yeah, if you probably be surprised to hear it and but until it kind of happens to you and you realize that this stuff is sort of going on all the time, it's kind of handy to have one of them latches in stock cuz it's a real hassle if you can't close your door or lock your van up.
8:13 -[Snorts] My door's been ratchet strapped for the past 3 days cuz mechanism was so broken that door wouldn't even stay closed.
8:21 -And what was your first thought like after you sort of realized that it's been broken into and you've got damage to the outside of the van and the van door like not closing.
8:27 -And there's a part damaged inside.
8:29 -What was you sort of thinking like how to fix that?
8:32 -It was just a nightmare.
8:32 -Like you don't really know what to do with yourself cuz you're a bit like tools are gone.
8:39 -I need to figure out where I can try and get them back.
8:41 -I need to make a police report.
8:42 -And then there's also the damage to the van that you're like, well, how do I lock this van now?
8:46 -What do I do now with what's left behind?
8:48 -Cuz the thieves didn't get everything.
8:52 -You're a bit like now what do you do?
8:52 -So then that's when you have to kind of problem solve in a way of let's ratchet strap the door together and you know hope we're all right for the rest of the day and make it work until you can get the door sorted.
9:02 -But fortunately now it's sorted as I have to worry about that.
9:05 -Yeah.
9:05 -Cuz I presume that the first day you can't just go straight back to work.
How Do You Carry On After a Break-In?
9:08 -You got to kind of come up with a bit of plan and you still got you've still got jobs to do, right?
9:12 -Yeah.
9:12 -Still got a life still a life to live and still got work to do.
9:14 -So you just got to work around it.
9:17 -Yeah.
9:17 -And so you're there, you're back on the road and get back on with work and get back on with life and hopefully put this behind you.
9:23 -Yeah.
9:24 -And hopefully that's it from FE's attention.
9:26 -But hopefully so.
9:27 -The world that we're living in right now is pretty mad, right, with this sort of stuff going on.
9:32 -Yeah.
9:32 -Yeah, definitely is.
Van Break-In Repairs and Security
9:33 -Well, thank you so much for coming down.
9:35 -No worries.
9:36 -Been a pleasure to get your van up and running and sorted for you.
9:37 -And um if you're looking for security for your van, get in touch by the website.
9:40 -Might be Ford Transit like this.
9:43 -You might have damage in it or it might be a preventative measure.
9:48 -The website address is www.sussexinstallations.co.uk.
9:51 -Last thing to say is thanks for watching.
9:55 -[Music]
Transcript source: the YouTube auto-generated transcript supplied for this project, re-grouped into sentences with minor corrections (e.g. a misheard word). Automated transcripts can contain recognition errors and should be checked against the original video.
