In a move to reduce the cost of vehicle crime, The Motor Insurance Repair Research Centre - known as Thatcham - has been asked by major insurers to test and rate all new Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) against a set of rigorous security criteria.
The cost of HGV crime is estimated to be as much as £500m per year, with more than 3000 HGVs stolen and never recovered, together with another 40,000 crimes committed against vehicles.
The industry estimates that the cost of HGV crime increases to £1bn when the costs of stolen vehicle cargo, downtime and loss of business are taken into account.
Deputy chairman of The Joint Action Group of Lorry Theft DCI David Ryan said: "Don't ask any questions - it fell off the back of a lorry, is the much maligned soundbite of illicit pavement traders and some car boot sales.
"For a number of years there has been calls for new HGVs to have immobilisers, deadlocks, sophisticated parts marking and anti tilt locking technology.
"The news that HGVs will now be tested and assessed by Thatcham and the results made available, will prove to be the single most important impact in reducing the opportunities of lorry thieves in recent years.
"The industry will benefit, with higher specification vehicles and owner operators will be better protected. Higher standards of equipment put the driver back in control. Police support and commend this partnership approach. It has a proven track record in passenger cars and I look forward to seeing success in the HGV operating environment."
The HGV New Vehicle Security Assessment will be independently objective, take into account all relevant European legislation and will comply with the high assessment standards set by Thatcham.
The assessment will cover all aspects of the vehicle and test not only alarms and immobilisers, but entry methods, door and ignition locks, parts markings and other security features.
The criteria will form the basis of a new insurance security rating index for HGVs which will be introduced next year.
The index will provide a clear picture of the vehicle's security performance, providing HGV operators and insurers with information to assess risk and set insurance premiums to reflect that risk.
Thatcham's research and operations director Ken Roberts commented: "HGV theft is very much the silent crime, in that it is not often reported. However Thatcham's new HGV NVSA will help to reduce these massive costs to the UK economy."
