Tailgate Thefts Skyrocketing

The movie title “Gone in 60 Seconds” refers to how quickly a vehicle can be stolen. I’ve got a title for a short film. It’s called “Gone in 10 Seconds”, and it refers to how quickly a truck’s tailgate can be stolen.

Three tailgate thefts were reported to insurance companies in 2008. Five-hundred were reported in 2012. “Those are just insurance claims. We know that number is woefully under-representative. The problem is much, much larger,” said Frank Scafidi, director of public affairs for the National Insurance Crime Bureau. “There’s a huge market, and that feeds the monster.”

Because the F-Series is the top-selling passenger vehicle in the United States, most tailgates on the black market come from F-Series pickups.

To counteract rising tailgate theft, Ram has become the first truck manufacturer to offer a remote tailgate lock that operates in concert with the truck’s power door locks.

“We have [manual] locks on our truck tailgates today,” said Ford spokesman Mike Levine, who didn’t rule out adding a remote tailgate locking system in the future. “We’re always looking for ways to improve our products.”

If you are someone who locks your truck’s tailgate less often than you should, David Borg, a Facebook commenter on The Detroit News website said, “Two bucks and two minutes for a couple of hose clamps will prevent a simple lift-off of your tailgate.”

That’s the best advice we’ve read all day, and a great way to save the $1,200 to $3,500 it costs to replace a stolen tailgate.

via [The Detroit News]