Rocky Mountain Tracking

The International Association of Marine Investigators estimates that approximately 27,000 boats are stolen every year. And if you are the owner of a boat, you certainly do not want to be a part of this number.

There is a boat owner in Florida who now knows firsthand that a GPS tracking device is an excellent investment. This boat owner is starting off the new year still in possession of his boat, thanks to GPS technology and quick action his part and on the part of the local police force. He installed a GPS tracking device on his boat back in October and this past week was alerted through a text message sent to his cell phone that someone had moved his boat.

The GPS tracking device that the man in this story chose was one that allowed him to set a certain range of movement for his boat. Once his boat moved out of the accepted range, the device was set to send him a text message to make him aware that his property was out of range.

Once he received this message about the unauthorized use of his boat courtesy of his GPS tracking device, the boat owner was able to inform the police. Included in the text message was information about the direction in which his boat was headed, so the police knew where to look for the stolen boat.

The police department was able to locate the boat using a helicopter. The boat, valued at around $200,000, was found to be in good condition. The boat thieves escaped and at press time, they were still on the run. However, the owner of the boat was likely quite relieved to have his property returned to him, even if the thieves were not apprehended right away.

A GPS tracking device like the SmartTrack that Rocky Mountain Tracking sells is equipped with a Geo-fence and you can have up to 2 geo-fences programmed at a time. Once your boat, vehicle or other asset is moved in or out of an area that you determine, the geo-fence goes into alert mode. When you have the geo-fence on, you can choose to receive an e-mail or SMS message to let you if the asset you are tracking crosses the boundaries you have set.

Add a GPS tracking device to your anti-theft arsenal today.

An online article I read mentioned that last week Good Morning America did a story about how some car dealers are installing GPS tracking devices on the cars that they sell to people who do not have good credit. The idea is that this is a preventative measure: the care dealers will be able to easily find the cars in the event that they need to repossess them.

At least one columnist took no issue with this practice, commenting that if a car dealer was going to risk selling a car to an individual with bad credit, they need to have some way to protect themselves.

I do have one question though–Why not install GPS tracking devices on ALL cars then? Yes, experts will tell you that a credit store indicates spending patterns and habits, but one never knows. A person with good credit could also fall on hard times. Even with their good habits, they may find themselves unable to keep up with the expense of the car.

The same columnist, however, did find a thorny issue in this practice–disclosure. Is it fair for a car dealer to install a GPS tracking device on a car? Yes. Is it fair for a car dealer to install a GPS tracking device on a car and not give the buyer any indication that the device is there?

This same issue pops up when parents decide to track their teens driving habits using a GPS tracking device. But in the case of teens and parents, teens are under a parent’s guardianship and parents can use GPS tracking to keep teens out of harm’s way.

It gets a little trickier when we discuss GPS tracking and adults who are buying and selling a product like a car. There are some privacy issues at work here. For the most part a car dealer who installs GPS tracking devices on cars they sell is concerned with asset protection. It is unlikely that they will be snooping to figure out where you are going. But with the surveillance that GPS tracking provides, an unscrupulous care dealer might be able to do just that.

Rocky Mountain Tracking has GPS devices, such as the Smart Track solution that can be activated (and therefore only incur tracking charges) when you need to find a vehicle. Smart Track is a low- cost way to keep up with a vehicle without constantly monitoring it.

In the last post, we looked at some of the ways that GPS fleet tracking could improve productivity and save money. There are still even more reasons to use GPS tracking to keep up with your fleet of vehicles.

Asset Protection
Many people use a GPS tracking device as a way to secure their personal vehicle. This same principle applies to a fleet of vehicles used for commercial purposes. GPS devices that were primarily purchased for fleet tracking can provide the same protection to your company cars and trucks as they do for a personal vehicle. If an unauthorized user takes one of your vehicles, you will be able to track it using your GPS tracking system. It is likely that you’ll find it before the police do. Then you can give them the information and let them help you get your property back.

Lower Insurance Costs
You may be eligible to receive Lower Insurance Rates by up to 35%. Many insurance companies offer discounted premiums for vehicles that have a Real Time GPS system. Insurance companies recognize the ways in which GPS tracking systems can improve safety and make drivers more responsible. They are willing to reward companies who put these kinds of measures in place.

Tax Incentives
There are some tax breaks available to businesses that purchase GPS tracking devices and other equipment under the 2008 Federal Economic Stimulus Act. Of course there is a depreciation schedule involved, but it is well worth it to look into what tax breaks you can get. You’ll need to do some research to make certain that your business qualifies.