Rental industry wants tougher action on vehicle crime

Familiar scene?

1,500 rental vehicles stolen each year

The British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) has welcomed a new report outlining the ‘Postcode Lottery’ of police enforcement and highlighting the lack of attention paid to car crime.

An HM Inspectorate of Constabulary investigation has concluded that car crime is “on the verge of being decriminalised” because forces have “almost given up”.

“Vehicle theft or fraud is one of the biggest problems facing the rental industry, but our members are largely being left to fend for themselves,” said BVRLA Chief Executive, Gerry Keaney. “We need police forces to take cases of vehicle crime seriously and adopt a much more ‘joined-up’ approach to working with other constabularies.”

The UK vehicle rental industry has a fleet of over 400,000 cars, vans and trucks. Operators undertake rigorous training and share access to an industry-wide database of ‘problem renters’, but the sector still suffers an estimated 1,500 vehicle thefts each year. Vehicle rental operators are often targeted on a national basis by organised gangs.

The BVRLA has developed its own Stolen Vehicle Reporting Guidelines to help members report thefts and ensure that police forces are provided with the right evidence and information to conduct an investigation. The Association of Chief Police Officers and forces up and down the country have been made aware of this information, but it is falling between the cracks as more and more crime-reporting and administrative functions are outsourced.

Do you work for a rental company? What have your experiences been like in relation to dealing with theft? Let us know in the comments below