NER Releases 2004 Theft Report

February 14, 2005—The National Equipment Register, Inc. (NER), New York, N.Y., recently completed its 2004 Theft Report, detailing trends in construction and farm equipment theft and recovery. Estimates of the total value of equipment stolen annually range between $300 million and $1 billion. These statistics do not include losses from business interruption such as short-term rental costs, project delay penalties and wasted workforce and management time. By frequency of loss, theft is a greater problem than any other type of equipment risk. Excerpts from the 2004 Theft Report follow.

 

Geographically, equipment theft levels closely follow the amount of equipment in a particular area•the states with the highest volume of construction and agriculture have the highest number of thefts. In 2004, the top five states were 1) Texas, 2) North Carolina, 3) California, 4) Florida, and 5) Pennsylvania.

 

The type of equipment that is most often stolen is linked to the mobility and value of equipment. Value is the primary factor until an item becomes too large to move on a small trailer. For example, cranes are very valuable but are seldom, if ever, stolen as they are difficult to move. For this reason, equipment owners should look at the mobility of equipment as well as value when looking at which equipment to focus security efforts on. Note that most thefts are from worksites that may be difficult or impossible to secure.

 

As little as 10% of stolen equipment is recovered. Recovery locations and types of equipment recovered closely mirror locations and types most often stolen. Nonetheless, more than $4 million worth of equipment has been recovered as a result of NER's operations and relationships with equipment owners, insurance companies and law enforcement.

 

NER now provides its services to 350 insurers, 1,000 police agencies and 100 rental companies (including the three largest fleets in North America). Most recently, Sunstate Equipment Co., based in Phoenix, Ariz., has registered its fleet with NER. Sunstate operates locations in eight southern states

 

“Sunstate considers that NER's unique services compliment our existing theft prevention efforts•it is also a very cost effective solution that can be implemented immediately and across our entire fleet,” said Don Cash, Sunstate's corporate risk manager.

 

For more information about NER or to request a full copy of the 2004 Theft Report, go to www.nerusa.com.