Tracker, what a rip off!

[jaygeezer871]

In our household we now have my old Saab 900 and my A4. My wife has just got a Civic Type R.
With each costing £1000s to replace i thought i would look into getting a tracker fitted, afterall if it gets nicked, they boost the signal and the police go and retrieve it, happy days!!!

Now this is where i have a problem.
A tracker starts at about £300 to be installed, then each year they want a subscription of at least £80.
And what discount do you get from your insurance for this improved security, £10 poxy

quid!!!
Is it just me or do the maths not add up

I have insurance, it gets nicked, they pay out and i go get another one.
I could understand if you have a rare or modified car it would be worth it as you could never replace it, but not a mainstream car.

 

[audicruiser]

I had one on my E90 BMW 330d, it was already fitted but I never bothered activating it due to the subscriptions and as you say, my insurance would discount the premium only by about 5% with it on. The other thing is, if my car was stolen I am not sure I would really want it back!!

 

[DJ_Troopa]

Not all insurance company's give you discount for having a Tracker fitted.

Some people would like their car back and some don't, that's just how people are.

Also, as mentioned above in regards to having a Tracker but not paying for the subscription...... It is very important to have a live subscription under your name for the vehicle. No subscription = no activation.

If you are unsure then call on, 01895 234 567.

www.tracker.co.uk

 

[Nilz]

Was going to say, i dont think its Tracker that is the rip off, its actually the Insurance company as they dont always give discounts for any additional security.

Eg, a place I used to live, when I did quotes for the car, it didnt make a difference whether I had parking on the road/driveway or even a garage - also when quoting with a Cat 1 and without it made a £12 difference.

I guess it all still depends on car/location and personal circumstances rather than what is on the car.

 

[jojo]

Horses for course when it comes to Tracker, if you have a 50 grand parked outside, then a Tracker unit including subscription is peanuts, if you have a 5 grand car outside, obviously it's going to sound expensive!

Would I want my £50k Audi TTRS back if it was stolen, damn right I do! Do you think your friendly insurance company is going to give you a full payout on the value of the car after 2 weeks of ownership(unless you have GAP insurance), should it get stolen?

 

[johnnythepie]

Trackers are a waste of time and effort unless you want a slim chance of getting it back.Those that steal a car of taste know where the trackers are hidden (its not rocket science), and within the hour they are removed and your car on a ferry in a container.Would you really wwant your pride and joy driven by a chav and returned?I dont think so.They dont always come back as they went, and you try convincing the insurance company that the engine doesnt run right etc.Take out a gap insurance and leave a note stuck to a can of petrol in the boot.I sure as hell dont want mine back

 

[audicruiser]

Horses for course when it comes to Tracker, if you have a 50 grand parked outside, then a Tracker unit including subscription is peanuts, if you have a 5 grand car outside, obviously it's going to sound expensive!

Would I want my £50k Audi TTRS back if it was stolen, damn right I do! Do you think your friendly insurance company is going to give you a full payout on the value of the car after 2 weeks of ownership(unless you have GAP insurance), should it get stolen?

I would rather have GAP insurance and that way get a new car rather than have my stolen car back, plus GAP is probably cheaper in the long run!

 

[colicabcadam]

they do a long life subscription (costs less than 2 years), i have the monitor version (not on my car) as soon as the movment sensor goes off, you get a call, you can then either kill the ******* trying to steal it, or report it stolen and tell them to turn on the VHF

All police vehicles are fitted with VHF detection, also, people believe you can block a tracker easily, you cant, VHF penetrates many types of materials, it's not like GSM or GPRS

i'm not sure of the range, but in london you're never more than half a mile away from a cop car

 

[sidibear]

My Gap insurance cost £375 for four years, I bought it when I got the car from the dealer.

It had a tracker fitted by the dealer as it was their demo car, but I refused to pay the subscription when I bought the car.

As a section 1 firearms holder there is little I can do if I catch the people trying to nick it as I would lose my license.
But that's not to say I don't know some very interesting friends.......

 

[johnnythepie]

All police vehicles are fitted with VHF detection, also, people believe you can block a tracker easily, you cant, VHF penetrates many types of materials, it's not like GSM or GPRS

i'm not sure of the range, but in london you're never more than half a mile away from a cop car

Not from april with the cuts that are enforced.Not all police vehicles are fitted with a tracker tracker.Its the traffic cars ,and they are few and far between

 

[mitch78]

Trackers are a waste of time and effort unless you want a slim chance of getting it back.Those that steal a car of taste know where the trackers are hidden (its not rocket science), and within the hour they are removed and your car on a ferry in a container.

An hour? I know Jamiekip's tracker lasted about 5 minutes (literally) before it was out of the car.

 

[johnnythepie]

An hour? I know Jamiekip's tracker lasted about 5 minutes (literally) before it was out of the car.

well i am talking about brummies....:~

 

[jojo]

well i am talking about brummies....:~

LMFAO!

 

[jaygeezer871]

I concede that the tracker in itself is a good piece of kit, it's the insurance companies who are having a laugh offering £10 off.
I paid £100 for 3 years gap insurance, if it gets nicked I would not want it back and would fancy trying a differant car anyway.
I am also a met police officer so can talk from experience, only the BMW's have tracker fitted to find stolen cars. They don't get a longitude and latitude gps reading so the stolen car can be pinpointed, it's a beeping strength indicator with an arrow on the screen. You need a couple of cars to be searching at the same time to pinpoint it's exact location. The problem in London is that it's so built up that the signal gets bounced around all over the place making it very difficult.
You are quite right, the nick them and park them up to see if they are tracker equipped.

 

[murran]

the other thing is the damage they cause trying to find the tracker as quickly as possible. in one case at work, quite few years ago now, an rs4 estate was nicked from the owners house. the damage caused to it was quite repairable. but what wrote it off was the scumbags looking for the tracker, destroying most of the interior... dash, door cards, they even knifed the carpets if i remember!