Guest Patrick Posted March 2, 2006 Share Posted March 2, 2006 I am purchasing a new van but the alarm which could come with the van is not Thatcham approved. Will the Thatcham Cat 1. alarm suit a coach built motorhome or only a car? Is there a special one for motorhomes? Can anybody recommend a fitter in the Manchester/Lancashire/Cheshire area, and what is the approx. price? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mel E Posted March 2, 2006 Share Posted March 2, 2006 Car alarms are designed for cars - you need one designed for a commercial vehicle which is what your base vehicle is. You need to contact Van Bitz, who specialise in purpose designed motorhome alarms with the appropriate Thatcham approval and that of the major insurers. See their as in MMM as they now have a number of fitting centres. One of the beauties of their system is that you can tailor it to your needs - want an extra loud siren? -all yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest David Posted March 2, 2006 Share Posted March 2, 2006 Hi Patrick. thatcham 1 alarma are not suitable for M/homes, they are basicaly for cars, the area inside van is to big. Try Van Bitz advertised in MMM. They fit in a day a very good system, ther alarms work on radio waves, which change frequency thousands of times minute. We had ours fitted last year approx £800 it has extra sirens, plug in loop to cover bikes etc. when it goes off you dont want to be anywhere near it. It also has perimeter mode. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mel B Posted March 2, 2006 Share Posted March 2, 2006 I think it is unfair to say that all car alarms are not suitable for motorhomes, it's down to what ability the alarm has for components to be added to make it do what you need it to, if the alarm itself doesn't have the facility to provide you with what you need then don't buy it. One facility to check is the ability to isolate the interior sensors from the exterior door sensors, eg so that you can leave your dog in the van if necessary, if an alarm can't do this it isn't suitable for a motorhome. Also, what type of sensors are they going to install on the 'van door and the lockers? Are they suitable, do they know how to install them? Get them to explain to you what they are going to do, if they can't or it doesn't seem quite right, don't buy from them. Any genuine alarm specialist will be able to fit you an alarm that is suitable for your vehicle - if they've never done one before and start scratching their heads when they look at your van just don't use them. Make sure you go to one that knows their stuff, not one of these companies set up by "wide boys" who just know how to read a leaflet on how to install one! Also, check the warranty - what happens if the company ceases trading ... do you still have a guarantee??? To some extent you're better off getting one installed by a national company so that if you are had it fitted by one of their installers at one end of the country, another one of their installers at the other end of the country can sort out any problems for you when you're on holiday. That way at least if the installer you used goes out of business, closes etc you still have a way to keep your warranty valid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mel B Posted March 2, 2006 Share Posted March 2, 2006 Oh, forgot to say, make sure the installer shows you where the fuses are. I spent ages recently hunting for mine and eventually only found them when it was dark as the torch light reflected off one of them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Yorkshire Tyke Posted March 3, 2006 Share Posted March 3, 2006 We had a Thatcham alarm fitted when we bought our van by a specialist alarm firm The insurers commented that they would not have allowed one that was fitted by the manufacturers or a manufctures garage - dont know why, but have an idea Our van is 6m long & the sensors cover the whole length. All doors (4) are covered by seperate switches We have slept in the van with the alarm set, when on a French Aires de Service after being cought out by a major accident closing the Motorway for 5 hours Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Patrick Posted March 3, 2006 Share Posted March 3, 2006 Hi Tyke. I am interested in your comment from the insurance company. Why do you think they would not have accepted it. We are buying an Eldiss and debated whether to have their alarm system. However, I enquired if it was Thatcham approved and they said it wasn't. Hence my queries. I'm a fellow Yorkshireman and therefore don't like spending money, and a Van Bitz alarm is going to cost me £550, whereas I can get an ordinary Thatcham approved alarm for about £250. However, I am also wise enough to recognise that this is an area where it is not wise to skimp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mel E Posted March 4, 2006 Share Posted March 4, 2006 1. Yes, you can get a car alarm for £250 but it won't have the functionality of even the most basic alarm system purpose designed for motorhomes. And it will NOT have Thatcham approval in motorhomes. 2. Patrick is buying a new Eldiss which must be costing £35,000 upwards. As he himself says, he should get the right alarm system and stop doing the 'ha'peth of tar'. 3. A motorhome alarm system should have the loudest legally allowed siren (many car systems can barely be heard) and MUST have a perimeter setting that isolates the internal movement and glass breakage sensors - as Mel B says, it's great for leaving pets in. But it's also essential for good rest at night parked in an Aire or less secure campsite. 4. Ring Van Bitz and get them to send you their very comprehensive documentation (lots of pages to read) that explains it all and helps you to decide what features you need. Eddie is very genuine - when I descibed the manufacturer fitted alarm system on my new Renault Master, he readily admitted that it was more than adequate and, to add any extra features, he would have to disable it and start from scratch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Yorkshire Tyke Posted March 4, 2006 Share Posted March 4, 2006 My thinking is this A factory fitted alarm will be standard throughout that model - position, operation etc It is well known that the theives will eventually find a way to overcome these throughout the countries that these models are sold in Similarly with a Makers garage they will fit the alarm according to set instructions and all of that model will be fitted in the same way - which ever garage fits it Actually ours has a factory fitted imobiliser The only thing that does is to SLOW down any intended car thief It will not stop them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mel B Posted March 4, 2006 Share Posted March 4, 2006 Patrick Check with your insurance company before you spend any of your dosh, they may have restrictions on what manufacturers' alarms they will give you a discount for on your premium or even recognise. If your having an alarm is part of your insurance policy (as ours is) then better to find out before you go ahead with a particular company, it could be an expensive mistake to find out later that the one you've got isn't accepted by them! As for the cost, I agree with Mel E that, although some alarms that are used on cars may be suitable, and approved for use on motorhomes, for any that cost just £250.00 I would be very wary as well, you really need to be looking at £400+. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest enodreven Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Hi, When i checked with Thatcham they checked their database and confirmed that the imobiliser fitted by Fiat on my 2004/5 MH did meet their standards also they confirmed that as the imobiliser was acceptable i only needed a 2 to 1 upgrade alarm and they suggested that i went to a VSIB approved installer, they can give you the names of ones near you. However when i contacted my insurance company and asked what the difference in premium would be if i had the Cat 1 fitted it worked out at £25/year ??? that seems to show what the insurance companies think about alarms, albeit they were happy with the manufactures imobiliser ? Hope this helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest enodreven Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Oh and just a point when i read the Thatcham documents they appeared to me to only suggest that the IMOBILISER part of a car alarm may not be suitable and that one more suitable for a comercial vehicle should be used, It didn't appear to be saying that for the alarm itself ?? and if your vehicle already has its own manufacture supplied imobiliser ?? then its proberbly up to you ?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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