Over the last six months, Silverdell has become a victim of crime when four Ford Transit vans were stolen and two vans had their catalyst convertors removed.

In an effort to protect their vehicle fleet, they have commissioned ‘Assured Vehicle Specialists’ to provide prevention tactics to avoid future thefts.

Before a suitable anti-deterrent could be put in place, a little detective work was required to discover how the thieves were managing to steal and tamper with the vehicles.

They discovered that in order to gain entry into a van using a decoder, they have the technology to take the code and have a key cut. The key can then simply be used to turn the ignition on, then they communicate with the engine via a laptop, using the on board diagnostics. Within 90 seconds the software on the laptop programmes the key to the van, which starts, allowing the thieves to drive off.

Wayne Farmer, Silverdell UK Limited said:

“Assured Vehicle Specialists have been instructed to install a box to each of our vans, which fits over the OBD Plug, they the fit that to the anti-roll bar. The box has a 4 digit code to access it. The thieves cannot access the plug, or break into the box, therefore stopping further vans being stolen, a sticker is applied to the area where the OBD is located”. (more…)