Stolen gear (Devon)

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Surfing photographers in Devon are appealing for help in tracing £13,000 worth of camera gear stolen from a car parked outside a house in Barnstable.
Thieves escaped with high-end kit including a Nikon D2X and Fuji FinePix S2 Pro digital SLR from a silver Skoda Fabia parked in Trinity Place, Barnstable on 23 July.

The haul included a Nikon AF-S 500mm f/4 telephoto lens, which alone carries a street value, when new, of more than £6,000.
The equipment belonged to Extreme Board Shots, a business specialising in photographs of surfing and other water-based sports which was forced to cancel its planned coverage of one of the year's biggest surfing events, The Rip Curl Boardmasters in Newquay, Cornwall.
A few days later it is believed the thieves returned and broke into the house, taking property including a computer hard drive containing precious family photographs - along with other items of high sentimental value belonging to photographer Rob Tibbles.
The theft is a big setback for the business which is based in Woolacombe, North Devon and has only been in operation for 18 months. 'This represents not just a large monetary loss but a damaging blow to our business,' said Rob who has been a photographer for many years.
The Nikon D2X carried serial number 5024494 while the Fuji S2 Pro was marked 31L13857. The cameras were contained in a black Lowepro Reporter 500AW camera bag along with an Nikon 18-70mm and 17-35mm zoom lenses, Nikon 60mm Micro lens and SB-800 flashgun.
The Nikon AF-S 500mm f/4 telephoto lens was housed in a gold coloured aluminium case with an 'Animal' surf sticker on the side.
Rob added 'We are running most of our services as usual and hope to be back to normal soon.'

For details of more of the stolen items, along with serial numbers, visit extremeboardshots.com
Anyone who has information about the stolen equipment, or who is suspicious after being offered any such kit cheaply, is urged to call Extreme Board Shots on 01271 870084 or Barnstable Police Station on 0845 2777444.
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That sucks completely.
Upon first sight I thought "eh up it's that old wives tale", and armed with snopes firing up I entered the thread.
Seems (unfortunately) I was wrong, and a theft has taken place.
I don't have much kit, and I don't make money from it, so I can only being to imagine how I'd feel if it was stolen.

Hope they catch the <expletives>
 
I was worried there for a minute, I thought it said and a silver Skoda!
 
Seems to me I wouldn't leave £13k of gear in a car but as said, if it was stolen to order they'd have got it wherever it was. However - feel sorry for the bloke, must be gutted.

regards
 
This really upsets me as its doubtful that any insurance would cover the cost. While theift from a house or place of buisness is bad enough at least in most cases the equipment or cost will be replaced for the owner. When stolen from a car the insurance companies become slipper than usual and will often worm their way out of any liabilities. :annoyed:
 
Steve said:
This really upsets me as its doubtful that any insurance would cover the cost. While theift from a house or place of buisness is bad enough at least in most cases the equipment or cost will be replaced for the owner. When stolen from a car the insurance companies become slipper than usual and will often worm their way out of any liabilities. :annoyed:
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My insurance specifically includes theft from an unattended motor vehicle with no time or location restrictions, provided that "violent entry" was made, ie windows or locks broken, and the car has to be fitted with a Thatcham 1 alarm. I'm sure they'd still try and worm out of it but my policy (Photoguard) is a hell of a lot simpler than some I'd come across.
 
That sounds like good cover Adrian but most also stipulate that the equipment needs to be stored in a locked container in the boot not accessible from within the car, so anyone with a hatchback, estate or with a car that has drop down seats can forget it should they get done by some other similar scumbag.

If anyone has insurance on their camera equipment that they believe covers them for theft from the car, please take a few minutes to check the small print just in case, you might be one of the lucky ones that never needs it and has full cover, however you may just find yourself in a undesirable situation with cover that isn't worth the paper it is written on.
 
It's not too difficult to find a lockable box that you can stow your camera gear in, anchored well to some point in the car so it can't be removed easily it would deter most opportunist thieves.

Time is the key, you will not stop a determined thief but the thing is to make it as difficult as possible, so it takes too much time for the thief to get at your gear. An opportunist wants to be in and out a as few seconds as possible, if it's going to take minutes they won't stick around for fear of being caught.
 
Steep I agree 100%, however I was just pointing out a common issue that many insurances have in their small print..many people could overlook it and find themself without their camera gear and with the insurance company that they thought covered them saying "sorry, your not covered sir"
 
I'm with you :)
 
Steve said:
That sounds like good cover Adrian but most also stipulate that the equipment needs to be stored in a locked container in the boot not accessible from within the car, so anyone with a hatchback, estate or with a car that has drop down seats can forget it should they get done by some other similar scumbag.

If anyone has insurance on their camera equipment that they believe covers them for theft from the car, please take a few minutes to check the small print just in case, you might be one of the lucky ones that never needs it and has full cover, however you may just find yourself in a undesirable situation with cover that isn't worth the paper it is written on.
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That's a very good point Steve. I've checked and thankfully there's no mention of locked containers or similar anywhere in the policy T&C's but there might well have been something that escaped my attention, so thanks anyway :)
 
For those with estates, hatchbacks etc, just phone them up and ask them where you stand. Some of them will waive or alter the clause to keep your business.

I rarely leave my gear in the car unattended, but somtimes you just can't take it. I've been known to take it in tesco rather than leave it in the car, but when i have to leave it, i strap it to the boot hooks with a strong bike lock.
 
Steve said:
That sounds like good cover Adrian but most also stipulate that the equipment needs to be stored in a locked container in the boot not accessible from within the car, so anyone with a hatchback, estate or with a car that has drop down seats can forget it should they get done by some other similar scumbag.
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If your boot isn't accessable from inside the cabin of the vehicle (seats can't be opened out) , it will usually be covered. You need to make sure that everything you want covered is stipulated in your insurance contract.
Make a note of all of your kits serial numbers.

Never leave your gear unattended.

This is the third one I've heard of this year.
 
The last company I worked for supplied us with a wire bag to secure the laptops in the boot.
Done a search this morning but can't find them.
They would be ideal for securing kitbags.
 
It looks like WE has stopped doing them, but HERE is a link to what you are looking for.

The Pacsafe system
 
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