I am a female driver, I spend nights out parked in laybys and industrial estates (the quieter the better) I have never been worried about being on my own or unwanted visitors/derv stealers…
Sometimes I even forget to lock my doors!
People keep asking me am I not worried about staying out on my?!
Should I be■■?
Do I really need to carry protection (god knows what)■■?!
Or am I just blissfully naive?!
As far as I’m concerned I’m happy and not bothered parked up for the night, curtains drawn.
Just asking?!
Cheers
you just know someone is going to tell you what sort of protection you should be taking and its not to do with your truck… 
For all intenses and purposes I really dont think you’d be at any more risk than any of us. If you park up and pull your curtains, no one will even know wether its a 20stone meat head inside the cab or a female of considerably less proportions.
Its just like in America, you hear all sorts of horror stories about this truck stop or that. Yet when you go there yourself its no different to any other with absolutely no hassle or drama at all.
Blissfully naive I think, your personal safety should not be taken for granted. It doesn’t matter what ■■■ you are. I recall Switchlogic woke one night to find a bloke in his cab nicking his gear. Should you awake to find said lowlife in your cab he may think twice about running if he was to see a female laying on the bunk. I would imagine said lowlife would have some sort of tool to gain entry to your vehicle which in turn could be turned on you. I don’t night out at present but I would not rely on the door locks to keep me safe. I think we all have to reduce the risk towards ourselves as isolated drivers.
Fileep:
Blissfully naive I think, your personal safety should not be taken for granted. It doesn’t matter what ■■■ you are. I recall Switchlogic woke one night to find a bloke in his cab nicking his gear.
It was probably his date for the night
tbh, I won’t night out on a side street, in a layby or in an industrial estate.
If they want me to sleep in the truck, they’re gonna ■■■■■■’ pay, truck stop / services, so I can get a shower / food / go for a crap.
I’m a 15st 6lb bloke and I always lock my doors, just to stop the chancers and make it noisier if someone does join me in the cab.
After locking my keys in a Volvo just over a year ago, I saw how easy trucks are to break into and don’t feel any more secure having doors locked, just the extra time it would take, they may move onto an easier target (IE, YOU!!!)
In our company with have one female who never has to do nights out, yet the rest of the 58 male drivers do. She says she feels vulnerable on her own at night.
In my opinion our namby pamby health and safety structured company are at fault.
Equality in the workplace pah!!
small print… I know a fair few female trampers who do the job just fine 
chester:
In our company with have one female who never has to do nights out, yet the rest of the 58 male drivers do. She says she feels vulnerable on her own at night.In my opinion our namby pamby health and safety structured company are at fault.
Equality in the workplace pah!!
small print… I know a fair few female trampers who do the job just fine
HASAW does not differ between sexes on keeping all its employees working in a safe enviroment, unless of course she was pregnant then there are a whole host of considerations.
i’ve already told you what you can do to make yourself more secure in the cab at night
just don’t pull too hard 
grovegarage:
I am a female driver, I spend nights out parked in laybys and industrial estates (the quieter the better) I have never been worried about being on my own or unwanted visitors/derv stealers…
Sometimes I even forget to lock my doors!
People keep asking me am I not worried about staying out on my?!
Should I be■■?
Do I really need to carry protection (god knows what)■■?!
Or am I just blissfully naive?!
As far as I’m concerned I’m happy and not bothered parked up for the night, curtains drawn.
Just asking?!
Cheers
Stay just the way you are. You start worrying and investing in various safety devices/weapons you just make yourself a victim, and probably end up a nervous wreck. I’ve never worried about it and in 27 years, over 20 going all over the mainland, I have never had an incident and I never took any special precautions other than a quick check of the area I was going to park in, if unfamiliar with it.
All the drivers I have known or worked with over the years I only know one who has ever had any one in his cab, and that was a bull story to cover the money he had lost in the fruit machines on the Dover - Zeebrugge crossing. Some drivers that I have not worked with or known but have had the misfortune to be talked at by have had more incidents in a week than all those other drivers have had in their entire career, and a couple of those have been doing it 40 years.
I’ve had diesel syphoned off in the night, but not had anyone in the cab or anything.
I normally have a sandwich before I go to bed, and leave the bread knife on the engine cover, if I was unexpectedly confronted with masked people in the middle of the night when I was dazed with sleep then it is the thing that would come naturally to hand, and if this meant that a ■■■■■ died then that would just be too bad.
grovegarage:
I am a female driver, I spend nights out parked in laybys and industrial estates (the quieter the better) I have never been worried about being on my own or unwanted visitors/derv stealers…
Sometimes I even forget to lock my doors!
People keep asking me am I not worried about staying out on my?!
Should I be■■?
Do I really need to carry protection (god knows what)■■?!
Or am I just blissfully naive?!
As far as I’m concerned I’m happy and not bothered parked up for the night, curtains drawn.
Just asking?!
Cheers
I have a different view to Coffeholic even though we have had similar time on the road, it isn,t my intention to scare you, but you did ask, I am 6 foot+, and 15stone+, even I ALWAYS sleep with doors locked, and since I have had about 4 attempted thefts in last 7 or so years, have a baseball bat ready (assuming that they play) I am selective where I park, some places that I would park 20yrs ago I would not park there now, it,s a sad fact of the job that we are an easy target for opportunist crime, so draw your own conclusions, and decide yourself.
Harry Monk:
I normally have a sandwich before I go to bed, and leave the bread knife on the engine cover, if I was unexpectedly confronted with masked people in the middle of the night when I was dazed with sleep then it is the thing that would come naturally to hand, and if this meant that a ■■■■■ died then that would just be too bad.
Interesting. What kind of sandwich?
Knuckle sandwich?
Harry Monk:
I’ve had diesel syphoned off in the night, but not had anyone in the cab or anything.I normally have a sandwich before I go to bed, and leave the bread knife on the engine cover, if I was unexpectedly confronted with masked people in the middle of the night when I was dazed with sleep then it is the thing that would come naturally to hand, and if this meant that a ■■■■■ died then that would just be too bad.
The problem with leaving weapons on view Harry, is that they can be used against you, my bat is under the pillow.
Ive had the pleasure of having my cab door bust open whilst parked up for the night just North of Barcelona…I woke up and made a commotion they left. Ever since Ive ratchet strapped the doors together so if they wanna come in its thru the windows…
Hey everyone by the way 
robroy:
The problem with leaving weapons on view Harry, is that they can be used against you, my bat is under the pillow.
Ah no, you see in a truck, a knife is OK but a baseball bat is a mistake. It would be a legitimate defence to say that you sometimes felt hungry in the middle of the night and needed to slice an apple, it would not be a legitimate defence to say that sometimes you woke up in the middle of the night and fancied a game of baseball. Your weapons have to be everyday objects
Harry Monk:
Ah no, you see in a truck, a knife is OK but a baseball bat is a mistake. It would be a legitimate defence to say that you sometimes felt hungry in the middle of the night and needed to slice an apple, it would not be a legitimate defence to say that sometimes you woke up in the middle of the night and fancied a game of baseball. Your weapons have to be everyday objects
The fact that anyone needs an alibi to defend their own life, property etc is a farce. The good working people do just that but wont someone please think of the criminals.
as you might need a torch in the middle of the night a nice large maglite torch is handy to have within arms reach.
glenman:
as you might need a torch in the middle of the night a nice large maglite torch is handy to have within arms reach.
even they are not as heavy as they used to be, i just got a new 2 ‘D’ cell maglight, it’s only half the weight of the old version 
glenman:
as you might need a torch in the middle of the night a nice large maglite torch is handy to have within arms reach.
Yes, as has been stated before on here, the only thing a Maglite is any good for is hitting people.