At Fiducia MGA, our Engineering portfolio ensures our broking partners can support all their clients, regardless of size, and access the right cover to meet growing risks.  

Within the Engineering sector, tool theft is one of the most critical issues facing clients today, requiring appropriate cover and proactive risk management to mitigate losses.

Here, Development Underwriter Rachel Lilliott discusses the scale of the issue, key loss prevention strategies to help the Insured and what underwriting facilities from Fiducia are available.

Tool theft – a perennial and growing issue

According to the contractor community platform On the Tools and its whitepaper Tradespeople against Tool Theft, 78 per cent of tradespeople have experienced theft, with only one per cent fully recovering stolen equipment.

To put this into perspective, research from Direct Line Group found that in 2023, 44,154 incidents of tool theft were reported – or one every 12 minutes.

The government has attempted to address this issue through the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023, which targets thieves by measures such as restricting tool selling at car boot sales – a common offloading site. Time will tell whether this new law will tackle the demand and supply of stolen tools.

Ultimately, tool theft has significant consequences. A thief only needs to be lucky once, whereas tradespeople must be vigilant against the risks 24/7 to prevent loses and ensure they are covered when/if they become victims.

What tools do thieves target?

The On the Tools survey found that on average, a UK tradesperson is likely to have between £1,000 and £5,000 worth of tools stolen in just one incident.

Police data also highlights the variety of tools which are stolen. For example, an extensive investigation by Kent Police resulted in 3,500 stolen items being recovered. Types of tools in this ‘haul’ included drills and impact drivers, saws, angle grinders, generators, batteries and chargers.

Vehicles: a prime target

Although tools can be stolen from contractors both off and on site, vehicles are amongst the most prolific targets for tool thieves.

According to MoneySuperMarket, in London alone, tool thefts from vans have risen by 60 per cent in the last three years, from 7,646 in 2020 to 12,285 in 2023.

Tools can be stolen from vehicles at any time, but the risks are at their greatest when stored overnight.

So how can the Insured manage their risk exposure?

Hotel “secure” car park diligence

When contractors work away from home, many will look for overnight hotel accommodation and park their vehicle in the facilities provided. However, this often presents a significant risk exposure as criminals often target these sites.

Many hotels will advertise their parking facilities as “secure” to attract guests, with signs and visible security measures throughout. Yet this does not necessarily mean that it is “secure” from an insurance perspective, as these claims cannot be guaranteed.

It may, in fact, lead to complacency and a false sense of security from the Insured.

This highlights how diligence is essential. So what can the Insured consider when selecting a “secure” hotel car park?

• Don’t assume barriers and fencing mean a car park is secure – these might help prevent a van from being stolen, but it may not hinder a thief from accessing a car park and carrying away tools
• If there is CCTV, confirm with hotel managers that it is functioning and park vehicles in a visible, well-lit location.
• When exploring accommodation, select sites which are Park Mark® This is part of the Safer Parking Scheme which uses police assessors to inspect car park safety and security measures. Park Mark® facilities have reported an 80 per cent drop in vehicle related crime.

 

Security steps to consider

Alongside vigilance when identifying car park facilities, there are additional steps for the Insured to consider to help mitigate tool theft losses.

On vehicles:

• Upgrade lock and alarm systems and install window grills and bulkheads
• Install secondary alarms not controlled by the central locking system. These cannot be disarmed by thieves accessing the vehicle control panel or by ‘hacking’ central locking system signals

On tools:

• Use a property marking kit with tools and register items on a database to aid identification and hinder-resell efforts. For example, Immobilise™, Datatag™ and SelectaMark™.

 

When parking up:

• Where possible, park with the vehicle’s loading doors backed against a wall to prevent access and tools being unloaded
• If a vehicle fails to lock when the fob is pressed, this could be a sign that the signal is being blocked or jammed
• Always investigate quickly when an alarm goes off. A common tactic thieves use is to activate alarms to test reactions

 

Ensuring the right cover with Contract Works from Fiducia

To complement risk mitigation strategies, it is essential that tradespeople have access to the right cover when losses occur.

This is why our Engineering portfolio is flexible and designed to help meet the needs of the Insured.

Our Contract Works facility, available to broking partners and sometimes referred to as Contractors All Risks, provides main cover for physical loss or damage while contract works are in progress.

The policy benefits are far reaching and designed to cover a broad range of risks.

Flexibility comes from its extension abilities to include employee tools arranged either for the principal, contractor or sub contractor on an annual basis.

Alongside flexible cover and competitive premiums, broking partners have access to market leading service levels from experienced, empowered Underwriters.

Want to know more?

Our Contract Works facility is part of our Engineering portfolio of underwriting products. Our experienced and knowledgeable underwriters can provide competitive policies with price and cover levels.

To find out more and discuss your specialised cover requirements or risk management needs, contact Rachel Lilliott on M: +44 795 182 8317 or E: rachel@fiduciamga.co.uk. To learn more about our expert Underwriters, click here.