wildwood2500

I feel for you. I just got back from pismo 2 weeks of sand is enought,but on wed night we got all of are 5 coolers stolen and 5 gas cans,3 water cans.500 bucks worth, cops said sorry thats it.I HATE SCUMBAG PEOPLE

lanwangeek

Thanks for the comments guys. I'm working through insurance now. The bad part is some stuff is covered until the trailer insurance and the other is under my home owners insurance. There is no question that I will lose money. The wife is already ready to go off on insurance. So, we may not end up as bad as I thought. But I should know more in a week or so.

I did go to the dealer I bought the trailer from and they gave me a copy of the build sheet and a price sheet to show insurance. Otherwise, they just want to use the base model and go from there.

When I bought the RV, the RV insurance was twice as much as what my insurance company was asking. Now I understand why. The kicker was that I was talking to my wife last week about revisiting the rv insurance (not knowing the trailer was already gone already).

As for the people that did this, I would not call them pro's, but this was not their first time either. We found that the fence was cut and it appears they had scoped out the lot to determine what to take ahead of time. The drivers license they used was fake, and the truck they used was stolen. But it was not the same truck that they used when renting the storage unit earlier that day and they made sure as to back into the parking space in front of the office to prevent the camera from getting the plate number. This was a well thought out plan.

Plans for the future is to have the locks on each wheel, maybe some kind of lowjack system installed, etc. We shall see. Anthony

Shovelhead

Just a question, but doesn't the storage lot have some resonsibility in your loss?
Maybe I'm just whistling in the wind.........

Grit Dog

When I parked my sled trailer outside, aside from a hitch lock, I loosened the wheel lugs. Figured the thieves wouldn't get too far before a wheel fell off and then they'd ditch the trailer.
Fortunately it's never been stolen.

turbox2

Ok guys remember to check lug nuts

TonyB

Sorry to hear about your loss!

Back in 1979, we had a slide in truck camper stolen from a storage yard in san diego. What a nightmare that was....no cameras back then! Took insurance about 2 months to settle.

We are looking at buying a truck camper, but because of the house, we'll have to store it off site. Having it stolen is my biggest fear! Mostly because I take care of things MUCH better than the average person!

Best of luck recovering from the loss!

Tony

P.J

Yeah, in the storage agreement there is probably some "Agree to indemnify and hold harmless" clause or some other catch all to save them from any responsibility in thefts and/or damage.

They SHOULD be responsible (or their insurance), with the gate & fence and all, but they are probably not.

lanwangeek

You nailed it. They say that they can't and don't cover my stuff. Basicly I signed the form. I bet that if I get a lawer involved, I could get that changed. We will have to see on that. Anthony

ptgarcia

They can put those clauses in the contract, but they still must demonstrate they provided reasonable protection. If they were negligent, say they constantly left the gate open, that clause wouldn't hold water.

P.J

This is a faily new Dutchmen, right? What is your insurance situation with it?

lanwangeek

Im still working on that. Of course, insurance wants to go low on the value. But, I prepared for the fight. I wil know more next week. Anthony

P.J

S.O.P for insurance compaines, they are not in the business of paying claims.

Make sure you list every single item that you screwed or glued to it, they are responsible for most of that too. Hold out on them, they'll straighen up once they realize you aren't going to let them walk all over you.

k-bit

What precautions do others take to secure your trailer or 5th wheel. I will start - lock on hitch latch, Battery disconnected so electric hitch will not work. I used to put a cable through the wheels but have been negligent in that lately.
Jack

Turbobob

This scares the H*ll out of me! I just bought a new 5th wheel toy hauler and will be storing it in a secure lot, with gates, fences, lights, and cameras. Well, after reading this thread, I'll be looking for other options! Blows me away how brazen thievs can be! I have kept my flat deck car hauler there, coupler lock & big chain through the wheels etc., and it has been fine. If that got stolen, I'd be out a couple of grand. But if the 5er disappeared, I'd be out 30 grand! It's insured to the hilt, but it would be a MAJOR PITA to get them to settle

CODODGE2500MAN

I've made it clear to the on sight manager that if my trailer leaves, it better be hooked to my truck....or he'd better be running after it. (of course it only works if you have a live on site manager)

THat, and there's a sign/sticker that says:
"this property is guarded by shotgun 3 nights a week....you choose which 3"

and

"the owners of this property are skilled marksmen. You are in sight, and we will excersise our right to protect our porperty. By entering you are agreeing to being shot (repeatedly!!!) if we deem it necessary"

and better yet

"trespassers will be shot!!!! (survivers will be shot again!)"


In the end, it probably won't matter, but hey, it's kinda funny. As for my trailer stored in my garage, I've just made it a point to clean my 12ga. and 40 in the driveway so all can see my protection....(FYI i live in a town house complex and I doubt any of my numerous neighbors would come into my house w/o me present!) Plus my 100lb lab and ausi would tear them apart!