What should you do if you suspect embezzlement or theft? 

In November 2023 alone, no fewer than 9 vehicles were recovered from shipping containers thanks to Rental Tracker!

Theft and misappropriation are often grouped under a single heading: “stolen vehicles”. But there is a difference: theft occurs when someone unlawfully takes possession of a vehicle. When someone lawfully comes into possession of a vehicle – for example, through a lease, hire or test drive – but fails to return it, this is referred to as misappropriation.  

The RDW website features up-to-date figures on stolen vehicles by category for the first half of 2024. What is striking about these figures is that the number of stolen passenger cars has fallen by 2% compared with 2022, but that the number of stolen commercial vehicles in the light and heavy categories has increased by as much as 6% and 44% respectively! Furthermore, the number of stolen passenger cars remains alarmingly high: 2,860 passenger cars compared with 884 commercial vehicles (828 light and 56 heavy commercial vehicles). The recovery rate for passenger cars is 41%, whilst for commercial vehicles in the light to heavy categories it ranges between 34% and 27%.  

In practice, this is an issue we deal with almost every week; we frequently receive calls from hire companies reporting suspected misappropriation or theft of one or even several vehicles. We have extensive experience in this field and offer support in tracking down the vehicle so that you can secure it as quickly as possible. Our figures speak for themselves; 95% per cent of vehicles are recovered thanks to our GPS solutions! 
These are impressive figures, but what can your company do to increase the chances of recovery? Below, we’ve set out a few more important tips to help ensure a swift recovery:  

1. We offer a wide range of GPS solutions, each of which has multiple and varied functions. GPS features such as immobilisation, geofencing and real-time track and trace enable you to act quickly and prevent your equipment from disappearing (completely out of sight).  
2. Accurate fitting records are absolutely crucial for tracing vehicles! Using our app, you can keep reliable fitting records quickly and easily. This information will enable you to easily locate the vehicle in question later on. See also our previous blog post: https://dev.rentaltracker.nl/een-kloppende-inbouw-administratie-een-fluitje-van-een-cent/ 
3. It is very important that the GPS trackers are fitted in the correct location and in the correct manner. Please ask for support or advice regarding the installation of our GPS solutions if necessary. We can advise you on how best to position or conceal the GPS tracker(s) out of sight whilst maintaining optimal connectivity. 
4. Set up notifications (alerts/warnings) in your portal and gain insight into the reports so that you are immediately informed when a vehicle “goes off course”. Through notifications (alerts/warnings) in the portal, such as geofencing and online/offline status, and reports (generating the necessary vehicle information), you’ll be quickly alerted when a vehicle “goes off track” and can swiftly uncover any potential theft or misappropriation. Notifications help to quickly uncover potential theft or misappropriation. Check out our instructional videos: https://dev.rentaltracker.nl/instructie-videos/ or ask us for advice or support. 
5. Monitor your fleet regularly. Using our user-friendly tracking portal and our efficient GPS products, you can register, monitor and secure your vehicles. The sooner you realise something is amiss, the better. Unfortunately, we still sometimes find that a company only calls us when a vehicle has already been “offline” for half a year, at which point there is little we can do to help. 
6. Please report any suspected theft or misappropriation to us as soon as possible. Our team has extensive experience in this field and can, if necessary, assist you in locating the vehicle with pinpoint accuracy. Should we receive a report of a possible theft or misappropriation, we will do everything in our power to determine the current location of the car, motorbike, campervan, caravan or other item as quickly as possible. Just like tracking services, we can often still determine the location even when there is no longer a GPS signal but the SIM card still has reception. This means there is a good chance that your stolen property can still be traced. 
7. Report the theft or misappropriation to the police as soon as possible and file a report. Make sure you have all the relevant information to hand, such as the registration number, make, model, variant, colour and any unique features of the vehicle (e.g. damage). Also provide the police with the last known location. Filing a report with the police is important; it significantly increases the chances of the vehicle being recovered. This is because the police will forward your report to the RDW, which will then register your car’s registration number as stolen. 
8. If the location of the missing vehicle is known, check the make and colour of the vehicle, but do not be misled by an incorrect number plate. If you find a vehicle of the same make and colour, but the number plate does not match, the vehicle’s number plate may have been swapped. Please inform the police of this suspicion. 
9. If the vehicle’s location is unknown, keep an eye on the area where it was last seen; stolen vehicles are often parked temporarily nearby before being moved to another location. You should therefore also check the surrounding streets and car parks. 

Source:  

https://www.rdw.nl/over-rdw/actueel/dossiers/voertuigcriminaliteit?utm_source=intern&utm_campaign=redirect&utm_medium=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.liv.nl%2Fdiefstalcijfers