The below document has been created by the Home Office Police Scientific Development at the request and help of the Association of Chief Police Officers. Both companies are in Scotland. They are working in conjunction with recovering stolen vehicles and using GPS to track said vehicles. The standards they are using are the European CEN278.
There are several systems on the market today to help track any stolen vehicle. These products are often used by fleet management companies to record driver history as well as where the vehicle may have been taken if it was stolen. There can be some difficulty with the System Operating Centre that is used to track the GPS signals, at least in the UK. The system is not located in the UK and therefore may not be able to track as properly there as it can in other locations.
This can place more work on the police resources and they may find that even using the systems they don’t have the minimum needs. The study completed is to ensure that the operating company will at least have police requirements met so that the police may be able to use it. This could enforce some changes. Once the system has been updated companies will also have to make sure they have updated their side in order to be within compliance of the new standards. The hope is to make it easier for stolen vehicles to be tracked, recovered, and the perpetrators brought to justice.
Tracking Systems
Any tracking system from the System operating centre must be completely accurate about a vehicles location. Furthermore it must comply with national and international mapping definitions to help police find the real location, within 100 metres. This will provide street names and other location attributes that will be recognised by the police.
Communication between the police and tracking service will be direct. Police may have facilities that generally take care of details recording stolen cars now, but they must be able to work with the GPS centre in passing on details. The police may request help to involve the systems company.
Other Aspects
Once the vehicle is recovered the police will need to stop the tracking of the vehicle. During the tracking a “call” should not be continuous, unless the police need the help. The police may enable other alarms at the time for more important calls that are received, which means they may terminate following a stolen vehicle if need be. If safety of the public or officers becomes an issue the tracking of the vehicle may be stopped.
OPERATIONAL RESPONSE:
The police may use computers and control systems to help in tracking a vehicle. They can get the reference number from the control centre in order to track the vehicle on their own. Headquarters is generally responsible for communication between the tracking company and the police in pursuit of the stolen vehicle.
A stolen vehicle report can be filed with the police by anyone who has knowledge of the theft or the person who owns the vehicle. The theft will then be logged in the system and will be tracked at the earliest convenience of the police force, by any car that has a portable tracking computer in their unit.
The police will then use the details given in the report, and concentrate solely on the information the GPS signal offers in order to confirm the theft occurred. Police will not take action if the confirmation of the theft cannot be made. The police will also only take action if there are circumstances such as knowledge without confirmation in which the police have some other knowledge.
Time may elapse during which time the police unit is made aware and confirms the theft before action is actually taken. If the police find that there is life at risk they are able to track the vehicle without confirmation or consent by the owner of the vehicle. For example if the owner is thought to be part of a crime or suicide and is thought to be the aim, they are able to get permission through their laws to track a vehicle. A supervisor may have to give that permission to the police unit at the time.
