From time to time m.logistics gets to hear of how tracking systems help to recover stolen vehicles, and we thought we'd share some of the latest incidents with you.

Two of them affected a parcels and courier company called Pathfinder. In one case a van was stolen in broad daylight while the driver's back was turned. He phoned his transport manager, who was immediately able to track the vehicle using the SupaTrak system fitted to it. Two thieves were quickly caught, and were later charged with the theft.

In the other case, a vehicle was stolen from the depot during the night, but the SupaTrak system was able to pinpoint its location, and the police recovered it.

Nottinghamshire County Council had similar success in recovering a pick-up truck stolen from its Misterton depot. This was fitted with a Thatcham Category 5 satellite tracking device from Masternaut Three X, which again proved to be the thief's undoing.

 

In this case the tracking information was so good that it helped persuade the authorities to call on a helicopter operated by Nottinghamshire Police, as well as South Yorkshire Police patrol vehicles.

Interestingly, the council was able to get Masternaut to increase the frequency of location reports from the vehicle, which helped the police to track it down within just half an hour.

Further afield, Eurowatch is particularly proud of a recovery it assisted in Morocco, where a client was trying to regain possession of a trailer from a customer who had defaulted on a lease.

Eurowatch was able to find the trailer and track it all the way from Agadir to the Mauretanian border – but the local police arrived just too late to stop it. Then on the way back, it stopped short of its final destination, probably because of a tip-off to the driver. However, the owners now had an idea where it was going, and in the event the driver was tracked down at home and the trailer was recovered there.

Eurowatch's Stuart Byrne says the operation was 'a real challenge', involving local police and security services, but adds that it proved the ability of the system.