Increase in wheel thefts

force fleet operators to step up security of commercial vehicles

As fleet operators worry about how deeply the recession will bite into their profitability, more and more are realising they need to protect their assets.

With every penny counting, they have to optimise loads, time on the road and logistics while minimising time-wasting delays and problems.

Increasing numbers of fleet managers are now trying to safeguard their vehicles against crime – including the theft of their wheels.

The loss of a lorry's wheels can cost an operator dear when time off the road is factored in, along with the knock-on delays for other deliveries.

Russell Fowler, Chief Executive of TruckProtect, which manufactures the Wheel Stop-It! Anti-Theft Wheel Nut, has noticed an upsurge in enquiries for the innovative security device in the first quarter of 2009.

Russell Fowler said: “We have seen a growing number of enquiries for the Wheel Stop-It! Anti-Theft Wheel Nut following a spate of wheel thefts.

“Wheels are expensive in themselves, but the time lost in replacing them and getting a truck back on the road takes vital income off the bottom line of an operator's business.

“Our exciting new product has a security code to ensure that your truck wheels are as secure as possible all the time.

“Especially in these challenging economic times, operators need to ensure they are doing everything they can to make their businesses as efficient as possible.”

The Wheel Stop-It! Coded nut cannot be removed by anything other than the fastener socket which bears the matching encrypted Wheel Stop-It! code. No two orders are ever the same.

Wheel Stop-It! is suitable for bolts or wheel studs, and for either steel or aluminium rims. It can be used on a wide range of vehicles, including trucks, trailers, farming implements, forklift trucks and mining industry vehicles.

TruckProtect is already spear-heading the fight against vehicle crime with its cutting-edge device to prevent thieves stealing fuel from trucks.

Sales of its InstantFit NECK-IT anti-fuel theft units have passed 100,000 and are rising. Additionally the company has national distribution agreements with DAF-TRP, MAN, Scania, Unipart-TTC and Isuzu along with many other dealers and distributors across the UK.