25 July

Owners of quad bikes and Land Rovers are being asked to follow this crime prevention advice:

Always leave your vehicle locked and alarmed if possible
Consider fitting an after-market approved immobiliser
Park in a locked garage or other secure area if you have one, or in a well-lit open space if not
Never leave the vehicle’s keys in the ignition, in the same outbuilding as the vehicle, or near your front door inside your home
Be vigilant when using your vehicle for anyone taking an interest in it
Consider fitting a transponder-based security marking system and tracker device
Have the vehicle’s windows etched with the vehicle identification number
If you are aware of any suspicious activity, contact North Yorkshire Police on 101 or 999 in an emergency. FL2 MY10 TD4 GS traded in at 2 years
FL2 MY13 TD4 GS Current

Having had two Defenders nicked, I can honestly tell you that doing all of those things won't make an haporth of difference .The bastards who nick them are professional with a capital P. If they want it , it's gone. Ref the quads,with some horses back on our field we could do with one at the moment or a Gator thing. I'm going to resurrect the 25 year old Honda we gave in a shed so if / when it gets nicked there won't be many tears.

The good thing is Freelanders have about zero interest to professional thieves  2009 GS Auto Zermatt Silver - Sold June 21 after 10 years of ownership

2016 Subaru Outback SE 2.0 diesel SE Premium Lineartronic Sold 2024 after 8 years and 80k miles . Best Car I ever owned !

2023 Toyota Hilux invincible X 2.8 Auto .

Was watching a police show on tv yesterday they recovered a damaged Defender in Leeds the cop specifically said Defenders and Freelander 2's are just disappearing.

Was outside the other halve's house yesterday when a small , newish , combi van on plates I didn't recognise as UK plates pulled up badly . Thinking they were lost foreigners , I went to see when the driver wanted when he beckoned me over. Driver I should say was in his late 30's to early 40's. His 2 passengers were late teens, early twenties. The passengers never spoke, but I noticed by their body language they were taking an interest in my Freelander.
They were gyppos .The driver asking me if I wanted to buy a 55" tv for £150. However my attention was more focused on the way the passengers where eyeing up the Freelander.
Anyway, after refusing his generous offer of a cheap tv for the umpteenth time, they pulled off, only to do a 3 point turn 2 houses up, then proceed to drive past my car slowly , taking keen interest in it, then driving the whole length of the road without stopping again to bother anyone else. Thought it was odd they were so keen to sell me a tv, but didn't bother anyone else, despite there being other people out washing cars, mowing the front lawn etc..
However, I left the other halve's at around midnight.
She text me after I got home saying she heard a car slow up out side the house not long after I left. Thinking I'd returned, she opened the curtains and saw what she thought to be the same van from earlier as she didn't recognise the number plates as British. 3 occupants as before too. Then , again, once passed the house, it turned around and drove the whole length of the road, not stopping again until it went out of sight.
Hmmm..........

Expect anytime soon a break in for the key fob then. Baseball bat by bed possibly a good idea.

Several years ago they came for a new VW Tiguan next door but one and were armed so take care my friend. I alarm the downstairs of our home at night and have CCTV. FL2 MY10 TD4 GS traded in at 2 years
FL2 MY13 TD4 GS Current

UPDATE:
Here's coincidence for you.
While parking in the city centre,to go and see "Dunkirk" guess who made an appearance in his VW Caddy ? Mr Gyppo. This time alone. I'd just walked back to the Freelander after getting my ticket and he pulled up at an angle across me. He was on his own, but I reminded him I had spoke to him the day before, which he clearly remembered . I also asked him why he felt the need to return on the night. Claimed it wasn't him. Then proceeded to ask if I wanted to buy a 42" Tv for £50. Told him no, to which he dropped the price to £40. Anyway, he drove away, only to accost some of our "overseas cousins" who , true to form, couldn't help themselves when presented with a "much cheapness" bargain. He opened the rear of the Caddy to let them see the goods. This time, with a full description and number plate (Irish plates) I was on to 101 and gave them all they needed to know. Police sounded interested and said they'd get someone out straight away.

Next time you see him ask him where my Stihl Brushcutter is ...and our neighbours horse box These people are parasites, we have had an issue with them for a few months , even following my farmer mates's wife on her quad looking for an opportunity Like you we have sent the reg numbers and CCTV to the local bobbies . We drove home at 3am this weekend and one of their pick up trucks was prowling around the town centre . I've taken to videoing them on my iPhone if I see one of their vehicles when I'm working outside . I'd be surprised if the police can do anything though all the vans will be "pool cars " with no link to the driver . I've just returned from the Irish republic where they are hated , the term they use there for them is "Knackers " 2009 GS Auto Zermatt Silver - Sold June 21 after 10 years of ownership

2016 Subaru Outback SE 2.0 diesel SE Premium Lineartronic Sold 2024 after 8 years and 80k miles . Best Car I ever owned !

2023 Toyota Hilux invincible X 2.8 Auto .

A friend of mine runs Purbeck Shooting School in Dorset it's a Clay Pigeon shooting centre. A few weeks ago he had 7 Promatic automatic traps, batteries and cables stolen, about £10k worth. Kit like this is fairly specialised and not easy to sell on, theories involve the Emerald Isle. 3 x FL1 2 manual + 1 auto
5 x FL2 4 manual + 1 auto
Now Discovery Sport P250 MHEV SE

A few years back I worked in the Network ops centre for Telewest. Alarms flashed up for a site and when we sent an engineer the huge back up generator, which was container size and bolted to a concrete plinth, was missing.
The bolts had been cut through with an angle grinder and lorry tracks at the side of the 10 foot fence suggested they had lifted the generator over the fence with a HIAB and onto the flatbed.

As the new generator was being installed a week or so later, the contractors saw a flatbed HIAB parked further up the road with guys in the cab, and a white van next to it, clearly waiting to pinch the new generator.
Police were called, but their response was that as a crime hadn't been committed there was nothing they could do. Thankfully the generator wasn't nicked again.

Yorky Bob wrote:

Expect anytime soon a break in for the key fob then. Baseball bat by bed possibly a good idea.

Several years ago they came for a new VW Tiguan next door but one and were armed so take care my friend. I alarm the downstairs of our home at night and have CCTV.

Gyppo's? We call them Caravan Utilising Nomadic Travellers (or a shortened version of that round here.  Past: FL2 TD4 HSE Auto
Evoque SD4 Dynamic Lux Auto
Present: Audi A3 S Line.

reading this think I'll start keeping the Freelander (and other car) keys in the bedroom at night!
Times like this I'm glad the neighbor opposite has about half a dozen CCTV cameras around the house looking into the street, even if they don't work has to act as a deterrent.

Steve D wrote:

Gyppo's? We call them Caravan Utilising Nomadic Travellers (or a shortened version of that round here.

Pure class  2009 GS Auto Zermatt Silver - Sold June 21 after 10 years of ownership

2016 Subaru Outback SE 2.0 diesel SE Premium Lineartronic Sold 2024 after 8 years and 80k miles . Best Car I ever owned !

2023 Toyota Hilux invincible X 2.8 Auto .

Smallmankey wrote:

reading this think I'll start keeping the Freelander (and other car) keys in the bedroom at night!
Times like this I'm glad the neighbor opposite has about half a dozen CCTV cameras around the house looking into the street, even if they don't work has to act as a deterrent.

Is he a drug dealer  MY 09 GS manual in Lago Grey, Wood Co arm rest and side bumper strips - now sold.

MY 15 SD4 SE Auto Orkney Grey with colour coded Bumper Door Mouldings

Steve D wrote:

Gyppo's? We call them Caravan Utilising Nomadic Travellers (or a shortened version of that round here.

Or those Irish Travellers who don't actually do much travelling. You know the ones? They set up home in a farmer's field and lay concrete roads and tap into the power cables for free.
Unfortunately the Old Bill are reluctant to touch them because they're described as an Ethnic Minority.  MY13 Santorini Black SD4 HSE