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Two Blokes came to view the van, did a test drive, had a good luck around.
Then Bloke A says to my mate as he hands hom the keys back......
"How do you lock this van, can't work it out?"
My Mate then points the key at the van, presses the fob and hey presto, it locks.
(But the key Bloke A had handed back was not the key for the van, it was a duff old VW key - Bloke B had the original behind his back and blipped that as he watched my mate press the phoney key).
That night, they came back and stole the van, with the key. Insurance company are suggesting they may not pay out as they deem it "theft by deception" for which, he is not covered.
I have heard of a similar trick where they (usually there are more than one). Asks for the spare set and the second key is replaced with a duff key by the accomplice.
But even a lone person could carry out the same trick by pressing the true fob behind their backs!
You have certainly got to keep your wits about you
I would like to think that I would recognise a different key if it was swapped over and handed back to me,he must be kicking himself for not realising it was a duff old VW key.
What I find a bit strange about this story is why did he ask how the van locked,surely he would have just handed him the fake key hoping he wouldn't notice and then come back later to steal it.
______________________________________________________________ cheers Steve
What I find a bit strange about this story is why did he ask how the van locked,surely he would have just handed him the fake key hoping he wouldn't notice and then come back later to steal it.
Criminal psychology perhaps Steve?
Making the owner think that he was in control, by locking the MH securely himself, he wouldn't suspect a thing. Bar Stewards.
I once had someone come to look at a caravan we were selling. I didn't like either the look of the guy, nor his attitude, and as soon as he was out of sight, I took the caravan back to it's storage unit..........just in case.
Regards,
Jock.
______________________________________________________________ For "Our Mavis."
My Mate then points the key at the van, presses the fob and hey presto, it locks. (But the key Bloke A had handed back was not the key for the van, it was a duff old VW key
Not come across this. Very odd thing to be able to do - the replacement key and fob must have been absolutely identical to the original for your mate not to have noticed then? My remote fob for my car is chipped on one corner and one keypad is worn, so I'd notice right away if I had a different one.
A very risky theft strategy, I would have thought, and not one I would consider due to the odds of having the right key, the right fob, and of course the owner only having one key on his keyring.
" Insurance company are suggesting they may not pay out as they deem it "theft by deception" for which, he is not covered."
IMO Insurance companies practice "theft by deception" could you name the insurance company as I don't want insurance from cowboys like this.
Gary
You call them cowboys, but if the owner is daft enough to give the keys to a thief, why should they pay out?
If the insurance company added a £25 stupidity clause, everyone would accuse them of ripping people off as "no one would be that stupid to give their keys away to a thief
I have never heard of that one but a friend did have both of his very expensive vehicles stolen from his garage and drive when the thieves came around in the night and quietly broke in to take the keys off the kitchen table where they were always left ( in view) ..... moral hide your keys or keep them on you.
So after reading this thread I too wondered how common this trick was so googled it ...it seems to be top of the list of warnings at this site so may have happened quite a few times:
I can also see that the TV show Real Hustle featured a similar scam in one of their shows.
______________________________________________________________ When confronted by a problem, you can solve it easily by reducing it to the question, "How would the Lone Ranger have handled this?"
If the insurance company were relying on 'theft by deception', and that is an 'exclusion' in the policy, the onus is on the company to prove that exclusion.
In which case the company would have to prove that the persons that they alleged deceived you were in fact the persons who stole the MH. A heavy onus on them.
I left some details out. Some on purpose, some for ease.
My Mate is a Car & Van Dealer.
It was actually someone else that was dealing with the customer in his absence.
The Vehicle was a Blue VW Caddy, similar to the one below.
I am going to withhold names, including the insurer and broker for the time being.
In a similar incident. OMC Ford Oldham had keys taken in a similar way. They had CCTV of the two suspects. But the Police say that the images are not clear enough.
When I sell cars or vans. I drive the prospective buyers to our local Supermarket filling station and pull up right in-front of the CCTV cameras.
Remove the key (only ever produce one for tests). Ask them to get out and come around to the drivers side. I then get out, get into front passenger seat, belt on and then only give them the key when they are in.
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France
For "Our Mavis."
