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Tracking systems - a warning. - kg
Please be aware that if you buy a vehicle with a tracker and do not register with in 7 days they will not activate the system, just had my range rover stolen, only had 11 days willing to pay but they would not activate.

Edited by Pugugly on 05/12/2009 at 12:46

Tracking systems - a warning. - adverse camber
But who would pay the annual fee if everyone knew that you could just ring them up and pay in the event of theft?
Tracking systems - a warning. - kg
I am a dealer who is selling car thats why i did not register
Tracking systems - a warning. - martint123
So it's not really your car?, not registered to you?. Covered by your professional insurance then?
Tracking systems - a warning. - AF
Can these systems really "turned on" and "turned off", or are they always on continually transmiting (even if the subscription has lapsed), but as you haven't paid, the tracking company just won't tell you where the car is?

Surely if it is the latter case, then if the police ask the tracking company directly then they would have to provide the information?
Tracking systems - a warning. - kg
police asked tracking company to activate but declined,i was there willing too pay for this but still declined, has a trader we don't have cars registered in our name apart from our own private cars.
Tracking systems - a warning. - kg
Just a quick note paid £500 car found in leicester in about 4hrs
Tracking systems - a warning. - Blue {P}
Just a quick note paid £500 car found in leicester in about 4hrs


Result! Pleased to hear that you got it back, even if it did set you back £500!
Tracking systems - a warning. - kg
paid for so is my car/correct not registered to me as i am a trader/ yes covered by my trader policy thank you
Tracking systems - a warning. - AF
police asked tracking company to activate but declined


So can they be "turned on" and "turned off", or did they just tell the police to do one.
Tracking systems - a warning. - kg
So i understand they can activate tracker anytime if they wish or can be ordered to by police to do so but must come from some one high up they won't bother about theft till a crime as been committed with vehicle,so in answer too your question yes i think they can turn on and off because if vehicle is found they would need too turn off.
Tracking systems - a warning. - motorprop
Surely that's not right : ' Just ring them and pay up in the event of theft ? ' how could you install it if the vehicle is stolen ?



You can't have it installed without payment ?
Tracking systems - a warning. - AF
It would have been installed by the previous owner, but the new owner needed to pay a new registration fee to benefit from the tracking company service.

But the question still remains, can they be "turned off".
Tracking systems - a warning. - 1400ted
Tracking company..' Withholding evidence ' from the police ??

Ted
Tracking systems - a warning. - Devolution
But the question still remains can they be "turned off".


Am I right in thinking a tracker is always off until activated. Dependent on subscription level you can normally have self alert, where you just find your car gone, you ring up and report it and they activate the tracker and contact the police; or more advanced options where it (the locked car) will detect unauthorised movement/entry and immediately alert/dial itself in to the tracker company (who will probably attempt to contact you first to make sure its unauthorised.)


Tracking systems - a warning. - BobbyG
I have always thought the Tracker system is very old fashioned.
From what I have seen on tv, when activated the police need to put a 4 aerial thing on their roof and then get "left a bit" "right a bit" instructions. Would be as well as doing the old you're getting warm game!

Why can they not do a system where it actually shows up on a map where the car is?
Tracking systems - a warning. - Pugugly

Why can they not do a system where it actually shows up on a map where the car is?


Because they'd need a GPS system for that - if that was employed - put the car in an underground garage or container then Bingo no signal.
Tracking systems - a warning. - Martin Devon
What is 'Track and Chase then'? Met up with an old mate a few days ago. He drives for a company and the Transport manager is always on the 'phone if he makes a wrong turn.

MD
Tracking systems - a warning. - Simon
>>What is 'Track and Chase then'? Met up with an old mate a few days ago. He drives
>>for a company and the Transport manager is always on the 'phone if he makes a
>>wrong turn.

I think that there are two different systems in use which differ from each other slightly and have their own pro's and con's. The one that your mate has with his Transport Manager watching over his shoulder is a GPS based system that pinpoints his position wherever he goes to within x amount of yards and transmits all of the time back ultimately to the computer system it is linked to in his office.

The original Tracker system doesn't work by GPS if my knowledge is correct and it only starts to work if it is activated by the Tracker people. Then once it has been activated it emits a VHF signal that is picked up by the equipment in the police force vehicles when they are within range of the device that is emitting this signal. Hence they follow the beep in the direction it is coming from until they are right on top of the vehicle in question.
Tracking systems - a warning. - kg
I am told they do system which can tell you where your car is in the coutry and advise you on movement via satilite.
Tracking systems - a warning. - adverse camber
motorprop,

it isnt just a matter of paying for them to be installed - the companies make the majority of their income from the annual fees that they charge. Typically the original owner of an expensive vehicle pays for both the install and the ongoing subscription, but by the time its a few years old the subsequent owners stop paying the subscription fees and let the service lapse.
Tracking systems - a warning. - Hamsafar
I suppose I don't blame tracker for doing this, or how would they make any money when people just pay up the subscription when a car gets stolen?
Tracking systems - a warning. - teabelly
The tracking companies are missing a trick though. Most people don't need a tracker to work until the vehicle is stolen. All they have to do is charge a high price for activation for it being stolen and mention how many years cover they'd get for the same amount. More people would then pay the subscription and it wouldn't exclude those that have got a car without a subscription. Once all these EU emergency assist gps doofers are widespread their business model is dead in the water anyway.

Loss of GPS signal is an issue but with A-gps on the mobile phone network then brief network signals could be used to narrow down the location.
Tracking systems - a warning. - rtj70
As PU says, because some tracking systems can pinpoint the car, thieves often park it up in a multi-storey car park and wait to see if anyone comes to retrieve it. If not they then move it on. Their logic is if it has a tracker someone might come for it.
Tracking systems - a warning. - ifithelps
Seen some good results from Tracker at court.

A fairly common scenario is the police raid a lock-up to find the thieves literally in the act of dismantling the car.

Tracking systems - a warning. - L'escargot
Is this information of any help? tinyurl.com/yd957zd
Tracking systems - a warning. - movilogo
You can create a self made tracker by using a GPS enabled smart phone hidden somewhere in the car. As long as you have unlimited data plan & there is network available, you can track it.

Even Google Latitude claims to perform this!

Tracking systems - a warning. - Dynamic Dave
You can create a self made tracker by using a GPS enabled smart phone hidden somewhere in the car.


You can do the same with a cheap phone and PAYG sim.

Then use one of the many find a mobile websites out there. eg

www.traceamobile.co.uk/
www.findamobile.co.uk/
www.followus.co.uk/index.html

etc.

I had this idea way back in 2003, and I've still not done it to any of my cars.

www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?v=e&t=18...3

Tracking systems - a warning. - movilogo
Interesting.. price starts from just 15p per search!

Now question is, where you hide the phone in car?

In most cars, if you keep it in boot, you lose signal.

Just yesterday I dropped my mobile accidentally in boot and when I was calling from another one, it was going straight to voice mail.

Tracking systems - a warning. - teabelly
You'd bag it up if it was outside or box it up for inside and make sure it was close to a power source as well as not being too far into the entrails of the car. Under the rear parcel shelf looking like something to do with the stereo perhaps?? Or hide the phone away but have an external aerial to improve range. This would allow greater freedom in placement of the actual phone. I'd probably stick it in the spare wheel bit. No one looks in there. Hiding the wiring would be the biggest problem as pro thieves would notice strange wires about the place and scrotes out for a joy ride wouldn't give a hoot.

If you use PAYG you have to be careful the sim isn't disconnected. The post pay DD plans are the only way of doing it cheaply unless you want to keep making a chargeable transaction with the phone every so many weeks.
Tracking systems - a warning. - Dynamic Dave
Now question is where you hide the phone in car?
In most cars if you keep it in boot you lose signal.


Depends on which network you choose. Go for one of the big boys (O2 or Vodafone) and it should still receive a signal 99% of the time tucked away in a cavity in the boot somewhere.