Broken in to. Better locks?

[DakotaDad]

Our Sabre was broken in to recently, and cleaned out. Lost the TV and some electronics, mostly replaceable things, aside from a couple with sentimental value.

It was in a "secure" storage facility. That's an entirely different issue to be addressed.

My question is a practical one. They jimmied the door open. Probably took them 30 seconds or less. It was easy. Are there better replacement locks for entrance doors?

I realize it's a feeble solution on anything with so many windows, so anyone determined is still going to get in. And there are plenty of other changes I can make. But I'm curious about this one part of the equation. Most of the searches I tried only came up with replacements of the stock hardware.

Anybody upgrade their door locks?

[GWolfe]

I surprised my friends with their new Jayco when I went and opened one of their compartment doors with the key I use on mine, one of those 751 keys. Its amazing the number of trailers that use that lock.

[laknox]

Pipeman wrote:
laknox, the dealer did not cover anything. My insurance paid but it didn't go up at all. On the same night there were 2 other dealers who had trailers broken into and it was all electronics that were stolen.

They should have at least paid for the damages, if not the stolen items, IMO. Then, you have to wait 3 months for them to fix it.

Lyle

[Pipeman]

laknox, the dealer did not cover anything. My insurance paid but it didn't go up at all. On the same night there were 2 other dealers who had trailers broken into and it was all electronics that were stolen.

[Tripalot]

Our truck camper was broken into once. Thieves used the back ladder to get on the roof and then smashed the large skylight over the bed. They went out through the door and did close it behind them - very thoughtful.

[laknox]

Pipeman wrote:
Mine was at the dealer's for some work to be done on it. They pried the door up but couldn't get in because of the dead bolt lock. So they broke out 2 windows and got in. They took the TV and receiver plus the 4 inch memory foam mattress and comforter. Must have been tired after breaking into 28 other trailers that were there. Now all the electronics are removed. Someone tried to break into the 5er when it was in the storage yard but the dead bolt stopped them and I had to buy a new lock. No damage other than the lock. The storage yard has cameras but nothing was seen by them.I forgot to mention that the 5er was tied up for almost 3 months getting the repairs done. New door and two windows, window shade, etc. My insurance paid.

Why did =your= insurance pay? I'd think that the stealer's insurance would have done so. Why should =your= rates go up when it was on their property for service?

Lyle

[laknox]

llr wrote:
When I had a class A they just punched a hole in the door. looked like with their fist but may have used some object.

Hell, a drywall saw could cut through most anything on an RV...

Lyle

[alboy]

We had a TT that had a really good deadbolt,they took a bar and just pried the frame away from the lock,lots of damage.After that i just used the regular lock.Easier to replace stuff than fix all the damage.

[md_procouple]

I agree with most of the opinions shared here, if someone wants in bad enough they will. As for better locks, we like JS Hupe noted above, the RVLock 4.0 is a good option, and have one installed on our 5'er. You can find them on e-bay and others like them. (make sure however you the ones with the key back up system) We also went one step further, and replaced all locks on the outside compartment doors with combination style locks (also on e-bay) Good Luck and Happy Camping !!

[llr]

When I had a class A they just punched a hole in the door. looked like with their fist but may have used some object.

[Pipeman]

Mine was at the dealer's for some work to be done on it. They pried the door up but couldn't get in because of the dead bolt lock. So they broke out 2 windows and got in. They took the TV and receiver plus the 4 inch memory foam mattress and comforter. Must have been tired after breaking into 28 other trailers that were there. Now all the electronics are removed. Someone tried to break into the 5er when it was in the storage yard but the dead bolt stopped them and I had to buy a new lock. No damage other than the lock. The storage yard has cameras but nothing was seen by them.I forgot to mention that the 5er was tied up for almost 3 months getting the repairs done. New door and two windows, window shade, etc. My insurance paid.

[Strabo]

Big Dog will stop anyone...Why deal with that situation when they can move on to another rig. Example,

Once they try to pry open the door, the dog is on it quick. Would Scare me, how about you?

[time2roll]

DakotaDad wrote:
It's the "breaking in" that bothers me more than the stuff we lost.

Could just leave it unlocked 😉

But seriously if it happens again I would move.

Kills me when the forced entry damage costs $300 and they get maybe $100 worth of stuff 😞

[FLY_4_FUN]

It is a sad reality that a building in the middle of nowhere will attract little attention, but put a fence around it and suddenly its a target. Same for rv's, you lock it up for peace of mind but even the worst thief can bust out a window or pry a lock. They aren't built like a house so they cant be protected like one. I once heard someone say they left their storage locks open and cleaned everything out for winter and that almost makes sense. If a thief looked into all your compartments and they were empty would they break in hoping for stuff or realize you empty the rig seasonally. We call them low lifes for a reason. They don't play fair or by the rules most campers live by. Do what you think is right and never leave irreplaceable stuff in an rv.

[T18skyguy]

Turn Key wrote:

MFL wrote:
IMO, better door lock will only lead to more destructive damage. I would just remove anything of value, so that a pro will take a look around, and move on.

Did this happen in Rapid City? SD as a whole is about as safe as it gets.

Jerry

Ditto. Storage compartment doors are not very strong and are easy to open, lock or no lock. One of the many reasons I would not use a storage lot to park my RV.

Happy Camping!

I remember a discussion some years back on this forum about "secure" facilities. An owner of one of these facilities chimed in and said that a good number of the burglaries were inside jobs. RV owners in general I think are good folk, but there are some bad ones.