Has anyone ever had their tools stolen?

[mowersplus84]

I have talked to several mechanics near me and they say there is someone that is breaking in to garages and steeling tools. as mechanics we work our *** off to get this stuff and its vital to our jobs. our wrenches put food on the table for us and a roof over our head. so when these . bums how have nothing better to do then going around stealing tools it pisses me off . please if you have had tools stolen . say what happened did you get them back

 

[jd_1138]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

I had a 100 piece car set stolen (Stanley brand) that was not too valuable. I'd say to be sure to insure your tools even if you need to get some business insurance or an umbrella policy -- or check with your homeowner's policy to see if it covers it. Do this BEFORE you are a victim.

 

[LEVE]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

Yep... I was building a house in the Cascade range about 35 years ago in my spare time. I went there after work and found the place had been broken into. All my tools and construction supplies were missing. It was not a good day.

 

[atwageman]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

I've got a policy that covers my tools at home, work, and in the car. It's replacement cost coverage too........example if a FL80 costs $80 today and two years from now it gets stolen and the same FL80 costs $100, then insurance pays $100. I've got $50k worth of tool coverage. While 50k won't cover everything, at least I know I won't be out of business, because I didn't plan for a what if scenario.

I've been lucky I've never had an entire tool collection grow legs. Know somebody it happened to, and they had no extra insurance coverage to cover the loss.

I have lost a tool here and there though, but never stolen. In over 20 years of using tools I feel fortunate

 

[senor fozz]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

I actually had the opposite experience. Last summer some one brokeinto my truck and left me a set of MAC cobalt drill bit set(missing some). Traded them into the mac guy for tool credit.

 

[henry29]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

I had about $2,500 worth of snap on tools stolen out of my barn, they didn't touch anything that wasn't snap on.

I didn't get anything back, cops didn't act like they really cared.

 

[RocketTR]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

Theft of your personal property ***** no matter what it is....but for some reason there seems to be a big taboo when someone steals your tools. I've had a few tools stolen over the years, but for the most part I think tools are safe when you're working with other mechanics who understand that tools are part of one's livelihood.

I used to work as a machine mechanic at a big pharmaceutical company and all the mechanics were supplied with a fully stocked box. Those tools would disappear quickly when someone forgot to lock their box before they went home for the day. I guess people feel that it's okay to steal from the company as long as you're not stealing from a co-worker.

 

[sloorider]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

I have had tools stolen twice, once in front of my house and once in my drive way.
Here's a theory to ponder-who would be in the perfect situation to clean out vehicles ?
Answer, person delivering early morning news paper!
They know the neibourhood, will not stand out cause the vehicle is always seen and could very easily check for un-locked vehicles. My suspicion is based on the fact that I had complained to the newspaper company about the free paper they were delivering(which I did not want) and how the delivery person kept breaking the screen door(when throwing it).

 

[atwageman]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

I had about $2,500 worth of snap on tools stolen out of my barn, they didn't touch anything that wasn't snap on.

I didn't get anything back, cops didn't act like they really cared.

Cops won't care. It's a dime a dozen crime to them......

 

[t4runner]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

I had someone break into my garage and they got about $500 worth of stuff. What saved me was my daughter came home and we have an automatic door opener so when she hit the button in the car all the lights came on as the door opened, they took off, as it turned out they used my small garbage pail to carry away my stuff.

 

[Fordman7795]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

I had my tools stored in a storage unit for a short period of time and someone broke in and stole most. About $7000 worth. I was lucky that my homeowners policy covered it.

 

[mech-tech]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

I started life as a mechanic, industry slowed down and got laid off, worked for a local police department until things picked up, then went back to mechanic work. Since I have seen both sides of the game, I can say the things that get stolen the most are power tools that people leave in their storage buildings that are either unlocked or not very secured. It seems the power tools are the hot items, something easily pawned and worth a little more. I have had to work a case where a guy was hitting multiple houses in my patrol zone, finally got him to confess and managed to recover some of the tools. They will do anything for drug money. My advice, secure your tools. If it involves much work to get to, they are not very interested. They are more interesting in a quick grab and go. In the state I live in, anything over $500.00 value either damaged or stolen is felony level with minimum 2 years hard labor. Luckily the guys I work with now I can trust, so we keep our boxes unlocked and the shop has an alarm system and cameras.

 

[mattamd_xp]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

I had my tools stored in a storage unit for a short period of time and someone broke in and stole most. About $7000 worth. I was lucky that my homeowners policy covered it.

I had a storage unit with about $5,000 worth of tools stolen. Unfortunately it was before I closed on the house I was buying and so homeowners didn't cover it. Police didn't care at all and I ended up swallowing the loss

 

[SpiderGearsMan]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

what if you don't own a home ?
insurance is a scam

 

[volvo92906]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

....but for the most part I think tools are safe when you're working with other mechanics who understand that tools are part of one's livelihood.

Depends on the shop. I worked at a truck shop at one point. Some guys who were a little more careless would leave tools out after working on a truck or something.. Then leave for the day. According to the others in the shop, the tools left out were fair game for anybody. I thought that was shady. Most shops I worked at, if you left a bunch of tools out for a day, or for a week, they would still be in the same spot you left them in. That is how it should be.

 

[volvo92906]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

what if you don't own a home ?
insurance is a scam

Renters insurance will cover tools as well.

 

[atwageman]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

what if you don't own a home ?
insurance is a scam

I rent. I have a renters insurance and a separate policy on my tools. You can get a policy on just about anything if you want to pay for it. I don't pay much for my coverage.

Only initial hassle I had was I had to take pictures and provide a inventory list to the insurance company of what I have.

 

[mech-tech]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

Oh, forgot to mention...detectives frequent pawn shops because they know most of it is stolen anyway, so engrave your stuff!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[RocketTR]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

... According to the others in the shop, the tools left out were fair game for anybody....

That's ridiculous. What were those guys smoking?

 

[volvo92906]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

That's ridiculous. What were those guys smoking?

Right... I didnt stay there long. Management didnt know how to run the place and the co-workers were backstabbers. I locked my tool box up every time I walked away from it. If I didnt, people would help themselves to the tools I have.. When I worked on semis, I used tools that made the job easier, which meant quicker turnarounds.

 

[marineengineer]

The place i work has an insurrance policy that covers all the techs tools i dont know how much it is but im guessing well 40000 per tech with 6 techs working full time

 

[zoomieport]

As an electrician, I was working on a very big "banking campus", and one Saturday, guys dressed like "construction workers", backed semis up to the job site and cleaned the place out... All trades, all the tools, any any useful material... Nobody said a word to them, it was broad daylight because, "they looked like they belonged there". Pretty big balls I say...

 

[zoomieport]

We all got replacement value by the way...

 

[rednotch]

All of them no, A few when I left a shop and came back for my box later on with some not so cheap tools missing, shop didn't give two shits. Had few ****** friends steal from the home garage also. not to mention a brother who likes to borrow stuff without telling you. I really should start locking my home tool box. This why alot of guys won't buy marked tools, theres a good chance there stolen.

 

[redwrench60]

We had a customer steal an entire set of blackhawk ratcheting wrenches from our diesel tech. The customer had been hanging around and chatting with the tech from outside the bay and saw them being used. We guess when the tech went to lunch the customer snuck in and took them, box and all.

We got them back but that's another story.

 

[redwrench60]

I had my Stihl FS 130 stolen from work by a customer/outsider. Ironically it was in the shop next to my box because I thought it would be safer than in the bed of my truck outside. Still burns my *** up.

 

[318fekim]

Pawn shops in my county now are required to fill out a forum with a full description of each item, including hand tools.... imagine a firearm purchase forum, model # ,color, length, mfg......needless to say the days of finding hand tools in pawn shops around here are gone.

I did have a tool pouch stolen out of my van one night, I found all of my BOE wrenches out of their mounted rack and in the top of my box...I guess they either got scared or it was too heavy so they left it. Had some one bust out the trunk lock in a Chevelle I was driving in Hawaii to steal the speakers, funny thing is they had to lay on top of a full carry box & a Edelbrock intake to get the sparkomatic's.

 

[Pumpman1968]

Pawn shops in my county now are required to fill out a forum with a full description of each item, including hand tools.... imagine a firearm purchase forum, model # ,color, length, mfg......needless to say the days of finding hand tools in pawn shops around here are gone.

I did have a tool pouch stolen out of my van one night, I found all of my BOE wrenches out of their mounted rack and in the top of my box...I guess they either got scared or it was too heavy so they left it. Had some one bust out the trunk lock in a Chevelle I was driving in Hawaii to steal the speakers, funny thing is they had to lay on top of a full carry box & a Edelbrock intake to get the sparkomatic's.

Sparkomatics man.........haven't heard anyone mention those since the 80's. Good times.......good times.

 

[toolfreak]

I had right at $5000 in tools stolen out of a service truck a few years back. Cops didn't care and the company I worked for didn't until I started talking about quitting because of it. After 3 months the company told me to buy the tools and they said they would reimburse me, they actually came through. I ended up getting tool insurance while traveling just in case it happened again but at $1000 a year I finally said hell with it. I don't know the policy for the shop I work in now but I'm guessing that they don't cover anything since they didn't ask for any kind of inventory.

 

[TOOL MASTER]

shoot first, bury the body later.

 

[Haveblue]

Ive never had much grow legs untill last year. I never locked my stuff up at all. A few items started to come up mia. I think it was the kid we had helping out in the shop at the time, but im not sure. There are times when noone is in the shop, and being a small town, customers walk right in like they own the place. I started locking my toolboxes when I go to lunch, at night, or any time I will be away from the shop for a while. Since I started doing that nothing has come up missing. None of the other guys lock their boxes, Ive tried to tell them they will regret it, but they still dont. I guess if the shop gets broken into their tools will be easier to steal than mine.

 

[Zeke]

Re: has anyone ever had there tools stolen

Depends on the shop. I worked at a truck shop at one point. Some guys who were a little more careless would leave tools out after working on a truck or something.. Then leave for the day. According to the others in the shop, the tools left out were fair game for anybody. I thought that was shady. Most shops I worked at, if you left a bunch of tools out for a day, or for a week, they would still be in the same spot you left them in. That is how it should be.

It is how it should be, but anything to do with a truck stop brings around the worst types. They are the ones who think anything that isn't locked up or bolted down might as well be theirs.

 

[ZRX61]

I had a cantilever box full stolen when I was just starting out, knew who did it, couldn't do anything about it... ended up drilling an 1/8in hole in his pumpkin cover, rear end blew up a while later

Another time I was walking home from a pub about 10.30pm & saw 2 guys I know wheeling a cart with toolboxes belonging to 5 other guys I know up the street. Went to see the nearest of the 5, he got the rest together & the tools were recovered. One of the thieves had EVERY knuckle broken with a ballpein... & that was done in front of his wife.

 

[nationalminer84]

The owner of the last shop I worked at would pick my lock for himself and his other employees. after I found out he told me to get replacements for anything lost or broken from the tool truck and charge it to the shop..... I made out on that deal.

 

[Tavy]

Honor system. And it depends on where you work... I've generally only had things go missing when I walked away from too long and the shady, ne'er-do-wells were around. Made me form a habit of locking everything up, including all my cordless gear jammed in a cabinet with an extension cord and a padlock.
For the most part, working overnights for a fleet, it's not so bad. Most guys are older, semi-retired, or in it for more than just the money so they've a little more character than the dime-a-dozen sort at your local tire shop. I leave a lot of my stuff stacked on my box and never really worry, just pack up when the shift is over.

However, newer guys borrowing **** and not returning it, is a whole nother story... I don't like hunting down my own tools...

 

[spotco2]

I worked in dealerships for many years and have had a lot of tools disappear one at a time. Never anything major, just a wrench every now and then or maybe a socket or screwdriver. I just replaced as needed and dealt with it.

Several years ago after I came out of the dealerships I had my boxes in my shop. A close friend that was strung out on meth took off with about $35k worth of tools one day. I couldn't find him but the police raided his place and he went to federal prison for years.

There was no reason to turn it in on insurance or even call the police. I dealt with him when he got out a couple of years ago and he admitted to it. He apologized and I had already replaced the tools. We came to an agreement that day. He stood with me at my first wedding and I still love him like family, but he is no longer welcome at my house.

 

[cburnscrx]

Yep, I've had my tools stolen, more than once actually. The first time was completely my fault, the 2nd time was unavoidable.

The second time my tools were stolen, I was doing a renovation job for a business in a strip mall (new drywall, wiring, bathroom, ect) and instead of carting my tools back and forth every day I just locked them in the back room completely out of sight. As luck would have it, the place was broken into one night, even though there was nothing in the store yet, the took almost all my tools. The real reason they broke in was not my tools, but they were trying to rob the store next door by kicking in the wall. They busted through the first wall, but ran into the second wall and gave up and stole my tools. These idiots were so stupid...my cordless circular saw was sitting not more than a foot from where they kicked in the wall and would have cut right through the steel joists with ease. In truth it would have made less noise than the kicking they were doing.

Oh, and I got NOTHING from insurance...homeowners wouldn't cover it because I was using them for professional reasons, and the company I was working for said I was a contractor so they weren't liable. While I am only a very part time contractor now, I have them insured for any instance. Talk about pissed! Oh well, live and learn.

 

[nuklbstr83]

Just discovered today that someone stole my snap on ; 1/2" drive SAE deepwell 6pt. socket set.

in a school shop, I used it on the engine i just tore down and rebuilt, but just noticed today when the instructor asked for a 3/4" deepwell, i went to get it, and couldnt find my 1/2" drive deep rail. (figured i put it in wrong drawer or something) so i went for the 3/8". after we were done, i searched my box 4 times, and my partner checked his box with me just to make sure it didnt get mixed up with his. Mine are etched, and i never loan out to anyone without collateral. i dont think i'lll ever find em. im royally phucking pissed.

 

[1950mercury]

Thats why i lock my tool box at home, there is no way they are going to take the whole thing. And im not going to make it easy to empty it...

I had a friend who used to make fun of me for doing it until he came home from vacation to 3 guy in his garage filling 5 gallon buckets with his tools. They got away and got about 1\3 of his tools

 

[dieselgirl13]

My tools were held for several months at my recent job for several months for a truck that was not even mine. After finally releasing my tools, i found over $7,000 missing. Filed a police report. Doing the small claims thing. Mediation did not go well. I have court on Monday for this. Are there any laws that protect our tools? what can I do in this situation? Any tips would be fantastic! what a nightmare!