Eagle Eye Contents — Winter 2005

Theft, vandalism and arson are problems that plague the construction industry; and according to industry analysts, losses are proportionately greater than in years past due to the number of products being installed in homes, the cost of these products and the increased market for stolen items. Job site crime drains your contingency budgets, impacts your schedules, and can drive up insurance costs and home prices. Common sense steps to prevent theft from your construction sites can save you time, aggravation and money.

Prepare the Job Site

Often, simple and inexpensive precautions can be the best in preventing theft. Thieves are looking for ways to get on and off your site quickly. The following ideas can hinder their quick getaway and make your site less attractive:

• Fence your site with chain-link fencing and secure with heavy-duty padlocks. Chain-link is best because your site – and activity – remains visible from the street. Consider having only one gate.
• Install security lighting. Not only will this illuminate your site at night, but would-be thieves will notice it during the day when casing the area. To help manage your expenses, both lighting and fencing can be rented.
• Consider security cameras. Some even install fake ones that look real. Keep in mind that working cameras need good lighting and unobscured lenses.
• Schedule just-in-time deliveries. If possible, coordinate the delivery of items to correspond with the date of installation. Did you know that Zurich’s Builders Risk Plan provides theft coverage for materials installed or uninstalled? This also means that our policy provides coverage for materials that are awaiting installation (subject to policy terms).

Be Prepared

Maintain a complete inventory of your tools and equipment and the details needed to properly identify them. Not only does this aid law enforcement in identifying the missing items, it will help get the unit back to you recovered. On your inventory list, be sure to include:

• For any equipment, include year, make, model, color and serial numbers (including engine and transmission numbers).
• All tools and serial numbers; consider duplicating the serial number in a secret place on the tool since thieves often remove serial number plates.

Not all theft occurs from the outside – many job sites have instituted a check-out policy for tools so they can be checked back in at the end of the day.