What insurers mean when they ask for a Thatcham tracker

You have bought a car, the insurer has come back asking for a “Thatcham approved S5 tracker”, and none of that means anything to you. This happens constantly, so here is the plain version.

Who Thatcham are

Thatcham Research is an independent organisation funded by the insurance industry. Among other things, they test vehicle security products and put them into categories.

Insurers do not want to assess every product on the market themselves, so they lean on Thatcham’s categories instead. When your insurer says “S5”, they are pointing at that scheme rather than at a particular brand.

Important: Thatcham categorise the product. Your insurer decides which category they will accept. Those are two different decisions, and only your insurer can tell you the second one.

The categories you are likely to meet

Category S7 is asset tracking. The vehicle’s position is monitored, and if it is reported stolen the tracking data helps recover it. It is the entry level of monitored tracking.

Category S5 does everything S7 does and adds driver recognition. The system knows whether an authorised driver is present, usually through a tag or card. If the car moves without one, that is treated as a theft in progress rather than waiting for you to report it. S5 systems also typically support remote immobilisation.

Category S5 Plus goes further again, generally involving immobilisation as standard.

Broadly: higher number is not better. S5 is a higher specification than S7, which is the opposite of what most people assume from the numbering.

Why yours asked for a specific one

It usually comes down to the value and theft risk of the vehicle. Higher value cars, and models with a known theft problem, attract stricter requirements.

It may also be conditional. Some policies only require the tracker above a certain value, or only if the car is not garaged overnight.

What to do next

Read the exact wording. Find the phrase in your policy documents or the underwriter’s email. The specific category matters, and so does any wording about the tracker being professionally installed or subscription active.

Check whether the subscription must stay live. Monitored trackers carry an ongoing fee. Some policies require it to remain active for cover to hold. Letting it lapse quietly could invalidate a claim, which is a horrible way to find out.

Ask about installation requirements. Some insurers require installation by an approved installer and will want the certificate. Fitting it yourself may not satisfy them.

Then tell us what it says. Send us the wording and we will tell you which system meets it. If we cannot meet it, we will say so rather than sell you something close.

The honest caveat

We fit Thatcham approved trackers and we are happy to advise, but we cannot tell you what your insurer will accept. Only they can. Policies vary enormously, even between products from the same company.

Get it in writing from them, then come to us. That order round saves a lot of grief.

Worth remembering

A tracker is a recovery tool. It does not stop the theft, it improves the odds of getting the car back afterwards. If prevention is what you are actually after, an immobiliser is the layer that does that job, and plenty of people end up with both.