Airstream Security Survey

[Secguru]

I'm conducting a survey to find out under what circumstances our lovely trailers and motorhomes are most likely to be broken into.

If your airstream has been broken into or stolen, please complete the survey above and indicate what kind of place it was parked when it happened.

Also, if you would, please indicate a little about whether it was stolen or broken into. If broken into, what kind of damage was done, and what kinds of things may have been taken.

I hope this will help us all be more aware of where we should be most aware.

[Secguru]

Before I bought my current 1982 Avion P-30 travel trailer, I had to repair damage to the door and frame where a criminal had pryed the door and frame open (it was locked by a deadbolt) in order to break into it. The P.O. had resolved this problem by installing a huge hasp where the old deadbolt had been (so ugly)! Amazingly, Chuck Cayo (Cayo RV) was able to restore it to near perfection. The trailer was parked on a deer lease.

[Pahaska]

See my article in summer 2013 issue of Airstream Life.

I was in a large storage facility with on-site attendant, cameras, lighting, code gate, chain-link fence, etc. Three men in hoodies cut the fence with bolt cutters and damaged 26 rigs. Some had only broken windows or other minor damage. My front window was smashed and my trailer looted; about $2800 combined damage and loss. In one MH, the thieves took candy and left valuable jewelry.

My trailer now has an automotive alarm installed with blinking warnings in key windows as explained in the Airstream Life article. Key is a magnetic switch to detect raising of the front gravel guard which was their means of entry.

The yard now has a retired policeman patrolling at night and has upgraded lighting and cameras.

[Protagonist]

At my own home (apartment complex), sixteen hours after I bought it. Person or persons unknown broke the passenger-side front window, and helped themselves to the Kenwood head unit, doing just over $3,500 damage to the dashboard of my Interstate. Stolen Kenwood unit never recovered, perpetrators never identified or caught. Damage fixed, good as new, by my Airstream dealer, who was more upset about the event than I was.

I had planned to install an alarm system anyway simply because all of my vehicles have alarms (life in the big city, don't you know); the thief just beat me to it. But because of the break-in, I bought a better and more expensive alarm system than I had planned. No problems since.

[Jammer]

You will take away three lessons from this survey:

1) People whose Airstreams are stolen don't want to talk about what happened. They want to talk about what is unique about their stolen Airstream (so you can be sure to let them know if you see it) and how upset they are that the cops won't look for it.

2) The vast majority of Airstreams that are stolen are stolen from gated, locked commercial or industrial locations. Usually the owner of the Airstream figures he can save money by parking it in the fenced storage yard at his business. Thing is, there's no one around at 3:00 on Wednesday mornings and the thieves can take their time

3) Finally you will find that the vast majority of Airstreams that are vandalized or burglarized were in an RV storage lot, usually one with fences, gates, cameras, and alarms, at the time of the crime.

The only crime people do against RVs in campgrounds is to steal generators, bikes, and lawn furniture.