A JCB farm loader stolen by thieves in the UK was traced and recovered less than 24 hours later nearly 400 miles away after an international police pursuit – thanks to JCB’s LiveLink tracking system.
The TM320 articulated wheeled loader - with a value of around £75,000 - was taken from the premises of JCB dealer Cotswold Farm Machinery in Cheltenham, sparking a hunt by police forces in four countries.
However, the machine was fitted with JCB’s telematics system LiveLink so during the pursuit, staff in the security control room at JCB’s World HQ at Rocester, Staffordshire were able to provide international police forces with live updates of the loader’s precise location.
The machine was tracked initially at Dover and then through France and Belgium as it was transported on a curtain-sided lorry. It was eventually recovered nearly 400 miles from its original destination and the driver of the lorry arrested after police put in place a road block near to Rossum on the Dutch/German border.
Simon Carrington, Managing Director of Cotswold Farm Machinery, said: “JCB LiveLink has really proved its worth. Realistically it would probably have never been recovered if it had not been fitted because the police would not have had the resource to try to recover it without exact details of its location.”
A JCB spokesman said: “Almost 35,000 machines around the world are now fitted with JCB LiveLink as an increasing number of customers realise the system’s great benefits. In this case LiveLink really did demonstrate its value in helping recover a stolen machine.
“JCB LiveLink also has other great benefits, providing real time data about machine condition and location and allowing dealers to manage servicing more proactively and customers to increase revenue and profitability and minimise downtime and inconvenience.”