I have read on here that some people secure their water containers and the like in order to reduce the chance of them being stolen, but I have always felt that our stuff was relatively safe on site. After all campers in tents have no security at all for their equipment.
But we have just spent a week in Cornwall and when we were out one day someone stole our hitch cover! I am pretty stunned to be honest, as they are not exactly expensive. They didn't touch the water containers, or any of the equipment which was in the awning. Just the hitch cover.
So I guess we need to go out and buy some locks and chains as even fellow campers and caravanners can't be trusted. It's a sad day.
are you sure it did not get blown away ??
could have been not tied on to good, or perhaps kids playing about, a hitch cover as you say is not worth the effort of stealing I wouldn't have thought.
but if it was stolen it does not suprize me it seems these days nothing is safe no matter where you are.
------------- "PACESETTERS" German Shepherd dog display team, we are out and about raising money for guide dogs.
Theres a very old saying that there are people who will stael ANYTHING thats isnt screwed down! Last year somebody stole the aerial off my wifes car (£8.99 to replace) Fortunately somebody witnessed it and left a note on her windscreen giving the details including the registration number of the thiefs car. As it happens, one of my best friends is a police officer who was at that time involved in an initiative against car related thefts. The information lead to the recovery of a lot of stolen items and a couple of people getting an extended holiday as guests of her majesty So we had the last laugh and our £8.99 aerial proved damned expensive for the theives.
------------- hawk
"Laugh and the world laughs with you, snore and you sleep alone"
I have the body of a greek god - its in my freezer
No it definitely didn't blow away. That hitch cover has survived some really strong winds on other sites, and there was no wind on the site we were at there in Cornwall. It was held on with two secure straps. I have no doubt it was pinched!
It is nice to hear than sometimes justice is done hawk!
We have just moved up the ranks from tent to folding camper and now the 'van.
In 40 years we have never had anything stolen,
I really hope that in this respect that this never changes.
Have had solar lights stolen on 2 different sites over the last 12 months, because they were a little different i guess but still only worth a few quid each.
Had my tent broke into while we slept in it 3 tears ago and that was on a C&CC site
Its vandalism. No more forgiveable than theft, but mirror; aerials, water buckets; that sort of damage. I have had nothing taken on a C & CC site break, but have had a couple of bits of vandalism, petty theft on privately owned sites. I feel tha on club sites of most types, the people who use them have a vague loose feeling of community. Just a feeling I get.
We have only had things stolen twice and that was when we were tenting. Stayed at a poor site near Swanage and a vanload of young blokes arrived, went through all the tents, stole our food and sleeping bags but not the duvet strangely enough. Another bloke was left with an empty tent. We also had our saucepans nicked in France. I can't imagine why anyone would want to steal a hitch cover.
While we were staying on a site in Norfolk in May the weather turned exceptionally windy one day while we were out. We got back to the site quite late, and in the morning we found a new cover off part of a Cadac stuck in the hedge behind our van - as everyone who had been in our vicinity had packed up and left by then we had no idea who to return it to, so we kept it and it makes a brilliant hitch cover!
------------- Tigermouse
I have a very temperamental personality - 50% temper and 50% mental
Caravanners will steal anything, ask a dealer about what goes walkies from his sales vans!!
Reminds me though of one morning when I was a subby, went into work to find a barney going off outside the toilets!
Turns out overnight someone had nicked the guts out of one of the toilet cisterns!! and that left one between 17 blokes!!! Somehow being the subby this fell to me to put right and by lunchtime a brand new cistern was installed at a total cost of near £100!!
However, we had a really nasty guard dog called Zak, Doberman he was and took no prisoners, loved to lie in wait for unknowing truck drivers to jump out of their cabs within reach of his chain...he had character that dog!
At night though he roamed free so whoever nicked the bog worked with us?? or we would have found at least bits of him!!!
Its shocking that people in the same situation can resort to stealing. Like a lot of you say, none of us have good security while away so we like to think we can trust our fellow campers.
My sister a few years ago left her van on site while the family went out to the beach for the day at Brean. On their return they found their awning missing but the stuff that was in it was still scattered around. Although the campsite was full, no-one actually noticed the theft take place. They had to pack up and go home as there were 6 of them and the awning was needed for the kids to sleep in.
Id be grateful it was just a hitch cover you lost, infuriating though it is. My sister had saved for a year to take the family away and they were all devastated.
------------- I,d live life in the fast lane but, i,m married to a speed bump.
If you consider human nature, it isn't really surprising that theft occasionally happens on campsites. I think there are two main reasons for this having become more common.
In the first place, camping/caravanning is followed by many more people from a much wider background than was the case some years ago.
The relaxation in the forces of law, and the lessening of pride and self-discipline, has resulted in a greater number of thieves who feel no guilt in stealing the property of others.
At one time, everyone treated a thief as a social outcast; now we have organisations only too ready to "help him/her to adjust", and put the blame on society itself.
A couple of years ago we stayed on a site in the Lake district The warden asked us to leave something out to "mark" our site. Why this was necessary I don,t no because the site was nearly empty (near the end of season) So we left the steps out.When we returned they had gone along with the people nearest to us. We just assumed they thought we had forgotten & so took them. They never left them at the wardens office so just assumed they had been stolen
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Theft on site
So we had the last laugh and our £8.99 aerial proved damned expensive for the theives.
