WITH businesses increasingly looking to protect their vehicles and cut down insurance costs, GPS vehicle tracker are becoming increasingly popular, especially insurance approved ones.
The most popular and highly regarded type of insurance approved trackers are those certified by Thatcham, the industry leader when it comes to the testing and certification of GPS vehicle trackers.
Thatcham Approved Vehicle Trackers
Experienced car owners, especially those with high value vehicles, might already know the Thatcham name and what it means in the world of GPS trackers.
Thatcham is a non-profit research centre. The organisation works with insurance companies, car manufacturers, and law enforcement to set out guidance on maintaining safety standards.
Thatcham also carries out rigorous independent testing of vehicle trackers. This means that any GPS car tracker bearing the Thatcham Quality Assurance logo should be regarded as far superior.
The certification provided by Thatcham requires GPS devices to meet incredibly high security and safety requirements. This means that you can be safe in the knowledge that your GPS vehicle tracker is the best of the best and be confident in its performance if it bears the Thatcham Security certification.
The rigorous testing required to obtain this certification is also why Thatcham approved trackers are favoured by insurance companies, and having one fitted can in most cases lower your premiums.
Thatcham Approved Categories
While all Thatcham approved trackers are preferred by insurance companies, there are multiple categories available.
The different categories are known as S5 and S7, although you may still see them listed under their pre January 2019 as either CAT 5, CAT 6, or CAT 7.
All Thatcham approved vehicle trackers must meet the strictest of criteria, making the differences between CAT S5 and S7 no reflection on how secure they will be.
The biggest difference between trackers in the two different categories are that S7 trackers have a reactive system which does not require driver ID.
This means that S7 vehicle trackers cannot tell the difference between yourself or an unauthorised person taking your vehicle.
S5 systems, on the other hand, use a proactive system which can identify if an approved driver ID key is present. If there isn’t, a silent alarm is activated which will alert you that your vehicle has been moved.
S5 Vehicle Trackers
Category S5 is the highest level of certification that can be awarded to insurance approved trackers, with those devices that receive this certification being deemed as the most secure on the market.
Aside from highly-accurate GPS tracking, the vehicle trackers in the S5 category have a number of high-end features.
These include rapid police response and the ability to remote immobilise a vehicle should it be stolen.
S7 Vehicle Trackers
The new S7 category of insurance approved trackers offer GPS vehicle tracking at a lower cost, as they do not include many of the additional features found in S5 trackers.
Category S7 trackers will still provide a level of tracking that will be more than sufficient for everyday motorists.
They can show accurate street mapping, provide driver identification, and even include motion sensors to monitor if your vehicle is moved without your permission.
