Boat theft deterrence

[alphaalpha]

Hey all, I am getting my new boat in a months time and am wondering what you all use to protect your boat if you keep it in your driveway?

 

I have been doing some research and am looking at getting a hitch lock and I think possibly a boot for on the wheel. I would think that would be sufficient enough to keep most of the low-lifes away. If a seasoned boat thief really wants it though I imagine there isn't alot one can do to stop them.

 

Any advice/opinions are welcome.

 

Thanks,

 

AA.

[Bernie]

12 gauge.

[mercman]

Hitch lock,lock for the motor, lock lugs for tires including spare.and when its in my driveway i always make sure 1 of my 2 vehicukes is always parked in front of it.Also, i have nosey neighbors who are ALWAYS peeking through thier curtains to see what i'm up to.I always take the trolling motor off, and my gps is quick connect and i always remove it.

Not much else you can do

[Banger68]

I use a hitch lock and in a locked garage (i hope on the garage). Should keep away all but the serious crook. But if they want it bad enough, they will get it.

Edited April 4, 2011 by Banger68

[Terry]

well if the want it they will get it

 

but ball lock and tongue lock,

 

bar or uncutable cable through the wheel rims and locked

 

had the same on my trailer that held my ATV and they just hooked in and dragged it through a fence and up onto a tilt truck and drove away , but it's better then nothing

[HTHM]

I like the D-12 security system.....dog and a 12 Gauge.

[dhickey]

keep it out of sight

put it in the garage?

tounge lock and a good chain should satisfy insurance.

 

congrats man!

im shure we will be seing fantastic post.

and many years of enjoyment for you..

 

 

 

chain the engine to the boat.

theres bolts out there (i forget what there called ) but unless you have a the right tool its almost imposible to undo or cut.

im shure somone knows what there called.

Edited April 4, 2011 by saltydawg

[alphaalpha]

Thanks for the replies all. It will be too big to fit in my garage. If any of my neighbors complain and I have to move it it will most likely go under my inlaws car-port which is 5 mins away. If that still is unacceptable I have a cousin that has an acre of property about 20min away I guess I would have to keep it there. Any of the options leave it outside.

 

Thanks especially for the tips on the motor. I didn't even really think of someone just grabbing that. I will have to look into the locks for that. If anyone has any links to what they use that would be appreciated...

 

Has anyone used or looked into the "Spot Hug". I saw that online and looks like a neat idea. If your boat moves more than 500m without your key/code with it, it sends an alert to a 3rd party asset management company. It's a bit pricey but might be good. The only problem I see with it is that it needs to be mounted generally in a visible location and if a thief saw it I would think they would disable it right away.

 

Thanks again,

 

AA.

[mercman]

make sure its insured for replacement value.That way if it DOES get lifted, you can get another boat.And get as much deterants as possible to prove that you took precautions against theft.

 

 

[jedimaster]

A friend of mine hooked up a cow fence shocker to his trailer after it got stole twice in a year. He came home one day to a van hooked up to it with fried electrical. The van was stolen for the purpose of stealing stuff.

[dhickey]

pictures of your boat and security measures/ locks give those to your insurance agent.

in the off season put it at your cousins out of sight.

 

the bolts work.

 

ill try to find them over the next couple days.

[rob v]

#1 - make sure its INSURANCED.

 

 

Cable through the wheels and locked to the frame - if it gets pulled away the tire ain't turning. And it's parked right outside my bedroom window.

 

I've always been told the hitch/ball locks are pretty much useless - they just take the hitch off.

[irishfield]

Yep.. FULL REPLACEMENT Insurance is your ONLY peace of mind!

 

As for deterant requirements.... there is absolutely nothing in my marine policy that says I have to chain my boat to a railway bridge so they can't tow it away. Where do these myths come from....

 

Hitch pin and receiver pin locks are useless even if the boat is hooked to your vehicle at the local hotel... they'll unbolt the ball from your receiver and swing the trailer out and just bolt it to their empty receiver and drive off in the middle of the night.

Edited April 5, 2011 by irishfield

[John Bacon]

When I used to store my boat in my yard for the winter I would remove all ropes including rope for the winch. Teh boat was sitting on the trailer with nothing holding it down. If someone wanted to tow it away they would have had to take the time to tie it down before making their get away. They want to get in and out as fast as they can; every little bit helps. My boat was already more than 10 years old so it wouldn't likely attract the professional thieves.

[alphaalpha]

Yep it will definately be insured for full replacement value. I just really don't want to have to go through the aggrevation of it being stolen and having to replace it. I have also heard stories of insurance premiums going way up after a theft/claim which is also a tough pill to swallow...

[irishfield]

That's why AFAIConcerned you want a stand alone Marine Policy... you don't want it as part of your house policy like many do.

 

Raf lost his outboard in the fall... you wouldn't think someone would take the time to do that in your laneway.. but they did. So bugger the bolts some how to make them work for YOUR money.

 

Heavy cable lock thru the wheels/over the spring and axle and tuck it in tight so they don't see it. They'll hook up and try to drive away dragging your boat. Useless if they do what the buggers did to Terry with a roll off tilt bed.

Edited April 5, 2011 by irishfield

[alphaalpha]

That's why AFAIConcerned you want a stand alone Marine Policy... you don't want it as part of your house policy like many do.

 

Raf lost his outboard in the fall... you wouldn't think someone would take the time to do that in your laneway.. but they did. So bugger the bolts some how to make them work for YOUR money.

 

Heavy cable lock thru the wheels/over the spring and axle and tuck it in tight so they don't see it. They'll hook up and try to drive away dragging your boat. Useless if they do what the buggers did to Terry with a roll off tilt bed.

 

Ya that sounds like the best plan. I have a line on some free heavy chain that I plan on putting around it on the more visible side then some more subtle stuff just in the rim and frame on the other side and hope that goes unnoticed if they do try. I wasn't planning on going through my house insurance anyways incase I do have to keep it somewhere else, I don't want them to potentially leave me high and dry (no pun intended).

[Pikeslayer]

well if the want it they will get it

 

but ball lock and tongue lock,

 

bar or uncutable cable through the wheel rims and locked

 

had the same on my trailer that held my ATV and they just hooked in and dragged it through a fence and up onto a tilt truck and drove away , but it's better then nothing

 

What Terry said. Lock concealed on the inside of the rims.

Kicker with anti theft bolts through the transom plus lock bar on the turn buckles. I had some lowlife scum try to lift my Honda 9.9 with the lock bar attached but it got caught up on the trim. That's when I added the lock bolts through the transom.

[vinnimon]

A mean dog, a double barrel 12 gauge and this dude

Edited April 5, 2011 by vinnimon

[Oggie]

I wonder if removing one wheel would help. Most thieves wouldn't think/bother to bring an extra wheel so they can steel it. I put a cutoff ball in the locked tongue. The neighbour had a thief with a small metal peg on his ATV hitch that was able to lift the locked down hitch so that they could remove the trailer to a more secluded area to cut the tongue lock off.

 

I tarp the boat to protect the canvas cover and the tarp makes the boat hard to really get a good lock at. Could be a new boat or could be a beater, can't tell without lifting the tarp.

 

Dan O.

[alphaalpha]

I wonder if removing one wheel would help. Most thieves wouldn't think/bother to bring an extra wheel so they can steel it. I put a cutoff ball in the locked tongue. The neighbour had a thief with a small metal peg on his ATV hitch that was able to lift the locked down hitch so that they could remove the trailer to a more secluded area to cut the tongue lock off.

 

I tarp the boat to protect the canvas cover and the tarp makes the boat hard to really get a good lock at. Could be a new boat or could be a beater, can't tell without lifting the tarp.

 

Dan O.

 

I like that tarp idea, simple and makes sense. Thanks.

[didoban]

I had an attempt a while back. The boat was a new 20' Crestliner Sportfish that was parked beside the house and alarm installed with 3 bullhorns in the boat. I also installed a on/off switch on the tilt motor and switch to off when parked in the house. I lower the front of the trailer and tilt the motor full down, then switch tilt motor off. Five thieves kept trying to hook up my trailer with the alarm going, they had covered one horn, got thwarted by my neighbour who heard the alarm. Damage to the skeg, but saved my boat.

[cwpowell]

No matter what kind of deterrents you have if they want it bad enough they will take it. And if they can't get it they will just damage it in the process.

 

Insurance if your friend.

 

Good luck and congrats on the new boat.

 

Happy Fishing.

[Guest gbfisher]

INS....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anyone wanna borrow a boat?.....

[jediangler]

I use a cable looped through the kayak with a ball on the end and close it inside the locked door. It can also be locked in the trunk.

Of course smashing a window would defeat the system but it might draw some attention to the thief.