Since 2007, the South African Police Service has achieved a minimum 50% recovery rate of stolen vehicles with the use of DataDot microdotting, indicating that the use of microdots is a powerful deterrent in the fight against vehicle crime.
On 1 September 2012, South Africa introduced the National Standard SANS534-1 and Regulation 56, which require all new vehicles to have microdots fitted. In addition, re-registered vehicles are required to be microdotted before a police clearance certificate is issued.
Derek Menday, Sales Director of DataDot, urges consumers to ensure the microdotting is done by a reputable service provider which complies with the national legislation requirements.
"Recent reports of illegal service providers offering microdotting from the boot of their cars put consumers at risk of being defrauded,” Menday points out. "The end result will not be reliable, and the irony is that usually it's not even cheaper. The suppliers give the customer fraudulent certificates to present to the police, so choosing a reputable fitment centre is by far the preferable option.”
The microdotting system is simple: about 10 000 tiny, disc-shaped microdots, typically 1mm in diameter, are sprayed on to a vehicle, mixed in a special adhesive, which is colourless when dry but fluoresces under ultra-violet light.
About 3 000 of them are sprayed on overt places where the police know to look for them or for traces of the fluorescent glue (or for signs of attempted removal); the other 7 000 are applied to a host of carefully selected covert places all over the car.
Each of these dots, when viewed under a pocket microscope, will clearly show the vehicle's 17-digit VIN, repeated several times in a pattern. Underpinning this is scarce and expensive technology, patented and regulated, which criminals will not have easy access to. The value of microdot identification lies in the fact that it makes a vehicle carrying a microdot warning sticker very unattractive to the middle man in the car theft racket, and hence also to the ‘runner' who steals the car.
Instead of quickly destroying or altering a few pieces of incriminating evidence, the middle man now has to get rid of 10 000 pieces of irrefutable evidence, some of them hidden in unexpected places.
"In addition to preventing car theft, microdot technology is also a huge help in police investigations, often providing an early breakthrough by facilitating easy identification of recovered vehicles,” Menday says. "Consumers are welcome to contact us if they have any questions, and the Microdot Association of Southern Africa is also available to handle concerns from the public regarding service quality issues.”
DataDot is the market leader in South Africa's microdot industry, with 85% of the market share. In the new vehicle market, DataDot microdots up to 60,000 cars monthly. Its client base includes Toyota, Audi, General Motors, BMW, Ferrari, Jaguar, Land Rover, Nissan, Suzuki, Tata, Volkswagen, Volvo, Honda, Hyundai and Renault. In the after-market, DataDot microdots about 10,000 cars a month through its 430 fitment centres, which are located countrywide.
For more information about DataDot Technology, call 0861 DATADOT, visit: www.datadot.co.za or e-mail info@datadot.co.za
Get the latest issue of FAnews