12 Tips to Tackle Vehicle Rental Crime

Doing all you can to keep your rental fleet secure is important. Even those running the tightest of ships can experience vehicle losses at the hands of criminals. We've put together 12 tips to help reduce the risk of crime at your car rental business.

Avoiding rented vehicle crime

Follow up on overdue vehicles promptly using the BVRLA/ACPO ‘Stolen Vehicle and Reporting – acceptance criteria and guidelines’ document drawn up to manage car theft within the rental industry.
Invest in a VHF ‘Tracker’ stolen vehicle location system and/or GPS/GSM vehicle tracking ‘telematics’ systems capable of tracking and perhaps also (safely) disabling vehicles that are overdue.
Manage keys carefully. Never leave them in vehicles, on the counter, or in sight of customers. Keep keys securely locked away in a purpose-built key cabinet. Use a secure theft-proof system for out-of-hours key drop-off.
Control entry and exit points, particularly in the case of large operations where appropriate documentation, driver ID and vehicle checks can be carried out.
Install appropriate perimeter protection and CCTV.
Carry out pre-employment security checks on staff you wish to employ.
Run a car availability report three times a day and compare that with those vehicles physically present.
Use two employees to check vehicle inventory (one to run the report and another to carry out the physical check) and change all computer passwords regularly.
Make sure all forms of hirer ID match with each other including driving licence details and signatures, credit cards and signatures, passports and other forms of identity such as utility bills.
Use a digital camera to record an image of the person hiring a vehicle.
Check hirer driving licences against DVLA records before the hire agreement is finalised and the vehicle driven away.
Only accept payment by ‘chip and PIN’ credit or debit card; never accept cash.

This is a marketing article by Towergate Insurance.

Commercial vehicle insurance from Towergate

We can offer tailored commercial vehicle insurance for your taxi, coach, truck, minibus and more. Our cover will help keep your business on the road.

Call for a quote on 0344 346 1418 or request a quote online.

Self-drive hire insurance from Towergate

We can offer affordable insurance for self-drive hire companies including:

Annual cover on a rental revenue, day rate, or rate per vehicle basis – we’ll advise you about what rating basis is best for your business
Face-to-face insurance best-practice rental desk training for your hire operators – helping you cut the risk of vehicle loss
Risk management led approach – including free webcams, free solutions to help your hire customers report claims without delay, and camera and telematics discounts

About the author

Chris North FCII, commercial vehicles insurance articles author Chris North FCII is a respected industry leader with over 40 years' experience, who has worked in the insurance industry in a variety of roles, accumulating a wealth of knowledge. He is currently Technical Manager for Towergate's motor division, providing expertise on all matters relating to motor fleet insurance, in particular haulage and self-drive hire fleets.