Lewis Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Today myself and a few mates went to a pay and play site. Whilst cleaning our lights and number plates etc at the end of the day a group of undesirable types came over and started taking photos along side our cars. On the face of it they were just posing with their kids, but every photo seemed to also include the number plates of our cars. I was deeply suspicious and promptly drove away to another location to finish cleaning up. So do pikeys and other scum have access to the dvla database? Are they gonna get our cars registered addresses and disappear them in the night? I'm more than a little bit worried by it and shall be taking appropriate measures with my 90 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 DVLA database that public can make an enquiry on does not give personal details or address of who/where the vehicle is kept. only info is if it's taxed/mot's or on sorn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted July 19, 2015 Author Share Posted July 19, 2015 Yeah I get that my address isn't freely available, but is it accessible for other means which can be exploited through unscrupulous means? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 AFAIK only Police or Customs can gain access to your address. as for non legal access I don't know, possible via the electoral roll, but it's a login & pay service, so doubt any 'undesirables' would bother to go that route. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studmuffin Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Not sure if they have access, but as soon as I see a pikey anywhere near my Defender I get twitchy!!!! Keep it safe mate. Cheers Barry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 in my first year at uni i went on a pay and play day at buildwas. I had just come up out the woods and some pikey types in a black discovery covered in monster energy stickers and a blingy winch asked for my help to get out, i obliged and naively left my truck unattended for all of 45 seconds while i pulled their winch rope up to my towball. finished the recovery only to find my keys missing and they scarpered without so much of a thankyou. Obviously i was highly suspicious, and it was about an hour till the end of the day. No doubt if i had left it on site and come back the next day with a spare set of keys it would have been gone, so i hotwired and smashed the steering lock off my own truck and drove it safely back to harper. i nervously slept that night and woke up to this: someone had forced entry into my truck and tried to take it. luckily the battery was flat as i had hotwired it wrong anyway, my truck was also blocked in that night by a mates 110 and another mates range rover. it seems they had a got at moving the 110 in order to get at mine but eventually gave up as it had only moved about a foot or so. (this 110 door was unlocked by them as the barrel was well worn) After giving up on mine they moved to a mates 90 which was stolen but luckily recovered a few days later minus a set of brand new special tracks and half the dash. I believe they must have come to harper looking for my truck (with my keys) and known its location because of the harper adams presence and window sticker etc. so yeah, be careful everybody. most of all, don't leave your keys unattended in your truck in a public place. P.S. the police did the square root of zilch to find out who did this, even after finding the recovered stolen 90! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynic-al Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 I had my sj pinched from my work. It's normally staffed 24/7. That week happened to be a maintenance week where it wasn't staffed at night. Turns out people had been ringing a lot at night and hanging up once it was answered. The workers didnt really think anything of it. Guess they knew when it wasn't answered it was a good time to come. Another time I was followed home, they didn't follow me from the play site they picked me up on the way. We played cat and mouse for a bit and they were shocked when they found me waiting for them a few times and in the end I called the police and reported them for looking like they were trying to pinch diesel, it's a well reported problem with businesses so more likely to get a response than an individual phoning. The problem is that the hobby attracts a lot of 'undesirables' and everyone naturally looks at other trucks so you don't think anything of it. However the undesirables think nothing of seeing and taking. In the past I've lost Cb aerials, shackles, diff guards etc. Have they just come off or have they been helped? The best you can do is conceal things, if noone knows it's there they're not tempted. The second best thing you can do is make it harder to take than the one next to it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TSD Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 AFAIR the dvla database is accessible to members of the BPA, the association for those fine upstanding gentlemen who do their utmost to ensure you don't park where you shouldn't, or for longer than you should, without making a suitable charitable donation. I'm sure there aren't any rotten apples in that barrel that might abuse their access and leak information. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Another time I was followed home, they didn't follow me from the play site they picked me up on the way. We played cat and mouse for a bit and they were shocked when they found me waiting for them a few times and in the end I called the police and reported them for looking like they were trying to pinch diesel, it's a well reported problem with businesses so more likely to get a response than an individual phoning. I've had a few experiences like that, once they know you have clocked them they get a bit shifty. Especially when you dissappear and then turn up behind them. I always make sure to let them know I've clocked them and if possible make it obvious you are taking their registration. The main tip is to know your area, and circling the same loop shows you aren't going to go home until they've gone. As much as I hate to say it I have been forced to definately obey the law like a good citizen before in fear of my (and my vehicles) safety! I have been followed 3 times in total, all in Coventry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 AFAIR the dvla database is accessible to members of the BPA, the association for those fine upstanding gentlemen who do their utmost to ensure you don't park where you shouldn't, or for longer than you should, without making a suitable charitable donation. I'm sure there aren't any rotten apples in that barrel that might abuse their access and leak information. Precisely what I was going to say, I'd take it as read that any undesireable can get your address from your reg thanks to the DVLA's practice of selling access to their database. I bet nobody does a check to see how many vehicles that get stolen were previously looked up on the DVLA database. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete3000 Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Probably stating the obvious but hiding info which would give your truck a home would be wise, i.e plant some random false stickers or paperwork to throw them off. Did you have harper off road or uni car park etc stickers in? Social media doesn't help with clues being available from photos public profiles, or youtube vids. be as vague as possible.......with a smattering of dis-information Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Google image search has apparently been used to find number plates on social media and thus work out who the owner is - thus obscuring it is worthwhile. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mad_pete Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 If it feels dodgy, good chance it is. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynic-al Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Not attracting attention at p&p days is the only reason I keep mine looking like it's going to be dropped off at the scrap yard on the way home, otherwise it'd be mint obviously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted July 20, 2015 Author Share Posted July 20, 2015 I try to keep the 90 looking a bit ratty for exactly those reasons Al If we assume that like most other stolen Land Rovers it would be stolen to break for parts, then actually it would be a waste of their time - the doors are rust from the lower hinge down, there isnt a straight panel on it, and the chassis has been heavily modified in such a way that it would be useless to someone else. But sadly the filthy stinking pikeys wouldn't find any of that out until well after they had pinched it If it feels dodgy, good chance it is. Those were exactly my thoughts I'm getting some smart water and already have some highly visible security and some invisible security, but can anyone make any recommendations? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwakers Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Whereas I leave my disco trayback unlocked with the key in the ignition. It's all about where it's kept. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muddy Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 How about a dome type camera with an antenna on it, clipped to the sun visor so it's sat at face height right above the steering wheel. They aren't to know its a dummy ( or even works, I'm not particularly tekky) Will. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynic-al Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 I had the theory that no one would pinch my sj as it looked ratty, everything on it was hand made by me so harder to move on and was parked somewhere where it was, or so I thought, hard to get and I rarely took the keys out. Problem is if it's for nothing they don't care what they get out of it and taking it is a bit of a buzz with their mates. Same mentality to the people where I work who steal toilet roll and washing up liquid. I blame the recession, before they ran stocks down you couldn't see it lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daan Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 I try to keep the 90 looking a bit ratty for exactly those reasons Al If we assume that like most other stolen Land Rovers it would be stolen to break for parts, then actually it would be a waste of their time - the doors are rust from the lower hinge down, there isnt a straight panel on it, and the chassis has been heavily modified in such a way that it would be useless to someone else. But sadly the filthy stinking pikeys wouldn't find any of that out until well after they had pinched it On your car, there is wheels, tyres, locking diffs, front bumper with winch, chassis, bulkhead, engine gearbox. I reckon you have 4-5k in bits on ebay, so plenty of reasons to steel it. Daan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted July 20, 2015 Author Share Posted July 20, 2015 I take your point Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sean f Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 Land rover in particular often get stolen for ram raids, lets face it most will make short work of windows or door ways and even normal walls, for that vehicle condition doesn't matter, weight, ground clearance and a big bumper are all that counts. A lot of other thefts will just be for the hell of it, they will steal it, race it about and smash it and probable a bunch if other stuff up then dump it. It is this sort of theft that basic but solid security devices will mosly foil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Henson Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 Sometimes they nick it, then burn it out to remove evidence Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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