Following fresh reports that keyless car theft and relay attacks are on the rise, Arnold Clark is making moves to further protect buyers by offering award-winning stolen vehicle recovery (SVR) solutions in partnership with Tracker. Under their new agreement, Tracker is the preferred supplier of stolen vehicle tracking units to over 200 Arnold Clark branches throughout the UK, providing customers with a high level of protection against vehicle theft.
In 2018, 88% of vehicles stolen and recovered by Tracker were taken without using the owner’s keys. However, the new partnership between Tracker and Arnold Clark means that car buyers have more power to stop vehicle thieves.
Arnold Clark is Europe’s largest independently owned car retailer, offering the best choice and biggest discounts on all new cars, nearly new cars and used cars. All staff have now completed Tracker training, so that they can help customers choose from a range of recovery solutions that meet their security needs, such as Battery Powered Retrieve, Monitor and Locate.
Greig Hilton, Managing Director at Tracker, says, ‘We’ve seen keyless car theft increase from 80% in 2017 to 88% in 2018, but this jumped most significantly from 66% in 2016, confirming the pace at which this technique is growing. Analysis of our 2018 theft recovery data revealed that the BMW X5 was the most stolen and recovered vehicle, with prestige brands BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Land Rover and Range Rover models reigning supreme in our league of top ten. The average value of stolen and recovered cars in 2018 was £20,000. These findings demonstrate the importance of SVR technology in helping police locate and stop thieves from selling vehicles on, stripping them down for parts or shipping stolen vehicles abroad.
‘In the past few years, Police Scotland has significantly invested in equipping its patrol vehicles and helicopter with our revolutionary VHF tracking technology in the fight against vehicle crime. And our unique partnership with Police Scotland ensures we can achieve the highest conceivable recovery rate for Arnold Clark customers.’
Jim Graham, Group Risk and Products Director at Arnold Clark says, ‘We are delighted to say that our entire network is ready to help our customers get the most from our partnership with Tracker. We offer over 20,000 new and used cars from 27 manufacturers, and now we can also offer our car buyers the very best SVR solutions available. Peace of mind comes from investing in the best defence against vehicle theft.
‘As Arnold Clark is well known for its value and excellent customer service levels, we needed a solution that was going to be reliable and high quality. The range of Tracker products and services gives us just that, and we can remain confident that our customers will receive the complete driving package.’
Tracker’s award-winning SVR systems have been reuniting car lovers with their stolen vehicles for 25 years. Operating like an electronic homing device, and unlike any other SVR devices on the market today, Tracker’s unique technology can locate stolen vehicles anywhere, even when they are hidden in a garage, a shipping container or at a location in Europe. A covert Tracker transmitter is hidden in one of several dozen places around the vehicle. There is no visible aerial, so the thief doesn’t even know it’s there.
