THE director of a plumbing and heating business has called on the police to do more to tackle thefts from works vehicles after one of his employees had hundreds of pounds worth of tools stolen in Chippenham.

Michael Moore, of Moore of Devizes, spoke out after the back door to one of the firm’s vans was opened with a skeleton key when it was parked on Loyalty Street on February 12.

Thieves made off with around £600 worth of tools before breaking into three more vans on the same street.

“This is the fourth time we have been targeted in the last couple of months,” Mr Moore said. “I dread to think how much we have spent on replacing tools but it must be in the region of £4,000 or £5,000.

“It is absolutely rife at the moment and it is so frustrating for us and the lads because they lose tools they need to do their work.

“Loads of people are being targeted and the thieves are taking anything they can get their hands on but the biggest problem is the people who are buying these tools.”

Despite reporting the crime to police, Mr Moore said he is yet to to receive a proper reply.

He said: “When I rang the police about this one, they were so nonplussed, it’s almost like they are institutionalised to it.

“We haven’t heard anything since then apart from the standard crime letter, which is not what I want.”

“I have never known anything like it and I’d be really interested to see the statistics for van thefts in the last six to nine months because I’m sure it would show an increase.”

Sergant Dan Pocock said: “We are aware of a number of incidents of vans being broken into, particularly where they are work vans with tools inside.

“We completely appreciate how annoying and disruptive this is for the owners – these tools are often expensive and people need them to carry out their work.

“We do take these types of crimes seriously and, where there is a chance of recovering evidence such as CCTV, carrying out house to house enquiries or speaking to witnesses, then we will follow this up and attend the scene to speak to the victim.

“However, unfortunately, with some of these incidents, there are no lines of enquiry to follow. We are urging van owners to take precautions to try to reduce the chances of them falling victim.”

“We would ask people to make sure all expensive tools are removed from vehicles overnight where possible. You can also make sure you park your van somewhere safe, for example, in a driveway or well-lit area. People should also consider fitting an alarm, marking tools with your postcode using distinctive paint, and recording serial numbers of tools.

“Anyone with information about these recent thefts should contact Wiltshire Police on 101. Alternatively you can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.”