To say tools and other equipment are an essential part of an electrical contractor’s job is a huge understatement – because without them, you simply can’t work.

When it comes to tools, they’re usually high value, specialised, and easily portable. They need to be, after all. But that makes them targets for scumbags who are happy to grab them off the back of your ute or snatch them off a site.

Tradies need to protect their tools, but if you’ve suffered from tool theft, you’re unfortunately in the majority. Stats show that 60% of tradies have suffered some kind of tool theft, and if things do disappear, it’s unlikely you’ll get them back – less than 25% of construction equipment is recovered each year, with online marketplaces making it relatively simple to pass stolen goods on.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), “other theft,” a category that includes the unlawful taking of goods without force, rose to its highest number in 21 years in 2024, with 595,660 victims recorded. The lesson is clear – it’s essential to protect your tools.

Because, as well as really pissing you off, you’re going to encounter delays to jobs, admin time spent lodging insurance claims, and the cost of having to replace those tools in the meantime. When you’re on a tight project schedule, the knock-on effect can cause cashflow issues and impact other projects, while insurance claims may lead to higher premiums.

While you can’t make everything 100% secure, you can make your tools and equipment less desirable by implementing a range of security measures to stop crims in their tracks – or at least give yourself a good chance of recovering tools if they do disappear.

Protect your tools – reduce the opportunity

First things first – we need to make sure that Scumbag Steve doesn’t have the opportunity to snatch something easily. A large proportion of tool theft happens when a ute is broken into outside your home – so if you can’t lock your vehicle away each night, remove what you can and lock your gear up. Failing that, the usual tips on parking in a well-lit area apply.

In addition, consider upgrading your ute’s door locks. There are lots of options available for high-security aftermarket locks for vehicles, which are worth considering. The same applies to toolboxes – make sure you’re using high-quality, tamper-resistant toolboxes to keep your tools in. Some have discreet holders for trackers built in… we’ll come to trackers in a moment.

Alarms for tradie utes and vehicles

But first, alarms. For your vehicles and tool compartments. Smart, multi-sensor alarms can detect and alert against various types of intrusion – a vehicle inclination sensor, for instance, can detect if the vehicle is being jacked up or towed, preventing both tool and vehicle theft, while an interior movement sensor can detect unauthorised entry by sensing movement inside. Glass breakage sensors provide even more protection. Most of these systems include smartphone alerts for real time updates.

Toolbox alarms can include very loud sirens and in-built shock and voltage drop sensors – and some can also be wired to a central alarm to trigger an alert if a toolbox door is opened without authorisation.

Mark your territory! Forensic marking

Forensic marking is an incredibly effective way to make your tools less attractive to a would-be thief  – because by making items uniquely identifiable to their rightful owner they become difficult to resell and easy to recover.

There are several proven technologies out there, including chemically-etched dots that contain a unique Personal Identification Number (PIN) registered to the owner that are near impossible to detect and remove. Liquid solutions meanwhile leave a unique code only visible under UV light.

Of course, if you use this method, you need to shout about it! Given the markings aren’t immediately visible to the naked eye, you need to plaster the fact that all of your tools are marked on toolboxes and on your ute – making the items clearly risky to steal.

GPS trackers – the lowdown

Over recent years, modern technology has brought a number of new solutions to market including GPS trackers.

Using satellite and phone networks, GPS trackers give you real-time tracking across the world. Some tool manufacturers offer their own bolt-on trackers to individual tools, while GPS trackers can be easily and discreetly attached to vehicles and toolboxes to ensure that, wherever they go, you can trace them.

Of course, GPS trackers aren’t necessarily cheap, and you’ll need to pay a monthly subscription fee too – however, having the peace of mind they bring will be worth the cost. Not to mention, avoiding all of the knock-on effects of having things nicked.

The last line of defence – documents and insurance

Of course, you can only do so much, and no matter what you do, you’re not going to eliminate the risk completely. Always keep records of the tools you have – receipts ideally, and photos too. And talk with your insurance broker to make sure your policy covers replacement tools at today’s values. Often, if you’ve had insurance for a few years, your sums insured may not have been updated, neglecting rising costs of goods.

By deploying some proactive measures, however, you can reduce the risk of being targeted by criminals, leaving you free to get on with what you do best.