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Truckers’ friend highlights crime hotspots

[ November 24, 2020   //   ]

The Motorway Buddy app overnight truck parking app has been enhanced with Police theft and vehicle interference data to identify safer options.

The upgrade has been made possible by a unique partnership between Motorway Buddy, freight industry insurer TT Club and NaVCIS Freight, part of the  Police National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service.

Theft and incident data is used to produce a ‘heat map’ illustrating vulnerable parking locations that is overlaid onto Motorway Buddy’s existing search engine for overnight parking.

Many crimes are not reported to the Police, but the app also allows drivers to upload their own reports of suspicious incidents and this information will be disseminated via subsequent updates.

TT Club managing director of loss prevention Mike Yarwood said that fuel syphoning can be a particular problem and was often unrecoverable as the value is below the excess stipulated on many insurance policies. However, the cumulative cost and other less serious damage to vehicles can be significant.

Over 300 truck stops, frequently used lay-bys and other informal parking sites are covered by the app and the new ‘heat map’ which emphasises the risks of using informal, unsecured areas.  So far this year, out of over 3,200 cases handled by NaVCIS,  51% occurred in such locations but anecdotal evidence points to an even greater proportion.

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