Introducing “Beyond the Installation”
Over the years we’ve shared plenty of photos of completed installations, explained the latest technology and offered advice on everything from solar panels and EV charging to air conditioning.
But there are also plenty of subjects that don’t quite fit into those categories.
So, from this month onwards, I’m introducing a new feature: Beyond the Installation.
Once a month, I’ll be sharing my thoughts on topics affecting our industry, our customers and small businesses in general. Sometimes it’ll be about new technology or changes in regulations. Sometimes it’ll be about customer service, running a business or lessons we’ve learned over the years. And occasionally, it’ll simply be something that’s been on my mind that I think is worth talking about.
When I first planned this series, I imagined the opening article would be something positive and inspiring.
Unfortunately, events over the past week had other ideas.
So, while it’s a shame that the first edition starts on a more serious note, I hope it gives a genuine insight into an issue that affects thousands of tradespeople and small businesses across the UK every year.
So, grab a brew, take five minutes and have a read. If nothing else, I hope this little article gives you a different perspective on our industry. Behind every installation is a business, a team of people and stories that customers don’t always get to see; and that’s exactly what this series is going to be about.
When someone steals a tradesperson’s tools, they don’t just steal tools.
Last week, our office was broken into.
Within minutes, thousands of pounds worth of tools, specialist equipment and computers had disappeared. Years of investment, carefully chosen equipment and the tools we rely on every day to look after our customers were gone.
Thankfully, nobody was hurt. That’s the most important thing. Everything else can, eventually, be replaced.
But what struck me most wasn’t the theft itself. It was everything that came afterwards.
Most people understandably assume that if you’re insured, the problem is solved. The reality is very different.
Every conversation we had went the same way. “Are you insured?”… “Yes”… “Ah well thats ok then”.
Insurance is there for situations like this, and we’re grateful to have it, but it doesn’t replace everything overnight. Claims have to be investigated, evidence has to be provided, values have to be agreed and decisions have to be made.
– Do you spend thousands of pounds replacing the equipment immediately so your business can keep operating, hoping you’ll be reimbursed later?
– Or do you wait for the claim to progress while jobs become increasingly difficult to complete?
Either way, the clock is ticking.
Every day spent without the right equipment has a cost attached to it. Lost productivity. Rearranged installations. Hours spent dealing with paperwork instead of customers. Disruption that stretches far beyond the value of the stolen items.
The biggest thing they stole wasn’t just our tools. It was time. Time dealing with insurers. Time replacing equipment. Time improving security. Time that should have been spent doing what we do best; looking after our customers.
Then there’s the part that rarely gets talked about.
You work hard to build a business. You invest in quality equipment because it helps you do your job properly and deliver the standard your customers expect. Seeing somebody force their way into your premises and simply help themselves to it leaves you feeling frustrated, angry and, if I’m honest, violated.
It isn’t just about the value of what’s been taken. It’s the feeling that somebody has invaded something you’ve spent years building. It makes you question what more you could have done, even when you’ve already taken reasonable precautions.
No business owner should have to feel like that simply for trying to earn an honest living. Unfortunately, this wasn’t our first experience of tool theft. Over the years we’ve had our vans broken into on three separate occasions, each time losing thousands of pounds worth of tools. Now our office has been targeted as well.
Across every one of those incidents, not a single stolen item has ever been recovered. That isn’t intended as criticism of the officers involved. I appreciate the pressures that our police forces face and the competing demands on their resources, but from the perspective of a business owner, it’s difficult not to question whether enough resources are available to tackle crimes that have such a devastating impact on local small businesses.
And we’re far from alone.
More than 25,000 tool thefts were reported across the UK in 2024, with an estimated value of £40 million. Research also suggests that almost four out of five tradespeople will experience tool theft during their careers. Those figures are staggering.
Behind every one of those statistics is a business owner who can’t work properly the next morning, a customer whose job has to be rearranged, an apprentice who can’t continue their training because the equipment has gone or even a family wondering how long the disruption is going to last.
Since the break-in, we’ve invested heavily in improving our own security installing a new top of the range CCTV system with instant alerts covering the entire property. We also installed the latest in technology alarm system giving us full protection on every possible access point.
It’s an investment we hadn’t planned to make, but one we now feel is essential.
But it does make me wonder…Where does it stop?
Should every small business have to turn its premises into something resembling a fortress simply to protect the tools it needs to earn a living?
And what more could we, as a society, be doing?
Could local authorities invest more in CCTV around known crime hotspots?
Could manufacturers do more to make professional tools traceable and harder to sell on?
Could online marketplaces and second-hand sellers play a bigger role in preventing stolen equipment from being traded?
And perhaps the hardest question of all…
Should stealing the tools somebody relies on to earn a living be treated differently from stealing other property?
When you steal a tradesperson’s tools, you’re not simply taking possessions. You’re taking away their ability to earn a living, you’re delaying work for customers and you’re creating costs that go far beyond the value of the equipment itself.
We’ll recover. We’ll replace what we’ve lost. We’ll continue investing in our security and doing everything we can to protect our business.
But many small businesses don’t have that luxury.
Perhaps it’s time we stopped thinking of tool theft as a minor property crime and started recognising it for what it really is – an attack on someone’s livelihood.
I’d genuinely be interested to hear your thoughts.
What more do you think businesses, manufacturers, local authorities, police forces and the wider community could do to make life harder for those who choose to make a living by stealing from others?
Behind every installation, there’s always a bigger story. I’ll see you next month, thanks for reading,
