Fighting back against theft

No-one has figures for the number of fork lifts stolen annually but it is a persistent and widespread crime because of the value of the equipment and because of its ubiquitous use across every industry and in every part of the country.  

However, as awareness of the Stolen Truck Database – available to everyone thinking of buying a truck – grows, the FLTA is confident that recovery rates will rise dramatically as will convictions for thefts.

The Stolen Truck Alert was originally for the exclusive use of FLTA members, but the Association recently extended its scope and availability by offering open access to its Stolen Truck Database which can be accessed at: https://fork-truck.org.uk/best-practice-advice/stolen-truck-database

Members of the Association will still receive Alerts but can find greater detail by interrogating the Stolen Truck Database.

Mentor is the UK’s largest provider of training for fork lift truck operators and operates a major training facility in Chesterfield. It was here that staff arriving to facilitate a training course discovered that five fork lift trucks and two access platforms had been stolen from the locked property. The local police were called in and, working with the West Midlands force, descriptions of the thieves and their vehicles were obtained and tracked down the motorway to a site in Walsall. Following a Stolen Truck Alert to all members of the Fork Lift Truck Association, Mentor received a number of calls from colleagues within the industry providing information regarding the likely identity of the criminals.  

According to Richard Shore of Mentor: “We were very well supported by the police, our insurers, suppliers and especially by FLTA members who, having seen the Alert contacted us with vital information regarding the perpetrators.  

“I must say that, though largely successful, the whole experience was expensive and long winded. The fork lift trucks were recovered but we never saw the access platforms again. The main culprit, who was previously known to us, received a three and a half year jail term. 

“Since then, we have upgraded our policies on keys, strengthened our locks, installed CCTV cameras and enhanced our burglar alarms.  

“Like most companies we had what we believed to be a good level of security and assumed that because we’d never been burgled we never would be – it’s something that happens to other people. 

“My advice would be to review your systems regularly (especially pass codes/key-holders) and if the worst does happen, immediately notify the FLTA along with the police. It certainly worked for us.”