Many new cars are fitted with alarms, immobilisers and other clever devices to improve vehicle security. They protect both your possessions and your car itself from being stolen by opportunist thieves.
The number of different car alarms and security features on offer, and the corresponding level of protection they give can be baffling for a new buyer. That’s without even considering the huge number of aftermarket units available.
Thankfully, an institution called Thatcham Research independently rates these different car alarms and immobilisers by category to give consumers a better idea of the role they play.
But what is Thatcham Research, and what do these assessment categories mean?
Jump to:
- What is Thatcham Research?
- What is a Thatcham device?
- What are the Thatcham Categories?
- Thatcham devices
- Thatcham Category 1 – combined alarm and immobiliser
- Thatcham Category 2 – electronic immobiliser
- Thatcham Category 2/1 – alarm upgrade
- Thatcham Category 3 – mechanical immobiliser
- Thatcham Category 4 – wheel locking devices
- Thatcham Category S5 – post-theft tracking and recovery systems
- Thatcham Category S7 – stolen vehicle location
- Q class systems – non-categorised aftermarket systems
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