CIMB Thai Bank (CIMBT) has welcomed a police proposal for financial institutions to make use of GPS technology to combat cash-delivery van heists.
Adisorn Sermchaiwong, CIMBT's senior executive vice-president, said there is no doubt the proposal will help discourage the theft of money being transported along with aiding the tracking down of stolen cash and thieves.
However, there are others parties involved in the cash-delivery business, including cash-delivery service operators and insurance firms, he said.
According to Mr Adisorn, cash-delivery service costs will rise if GPS technology is used though insurance costs are likely to decrease because of lower risks.
"CIMBT is using an outsourced service delivery, so it also depends if the service provider can bear the higher costs. As for robberies, the bank has insurance against theft," he said.
Police earlier called on banks and financial institutions to attach tracking devices to the bags they use to transfer money to ATMs.
Central Investigation Bureau chief Thitirat Nongharnpitak said Monday banks and financial institutions should be more responsible and place greater emphasis on public safety.
He said GPS tracking devices should be fitted to bags used to take money to ATMs.
In the event of a heist, police could track the robbers through the GPS-equipped bags and wait until they have left residential areas before moving in to arrest them, Pol Lt Gen Thitirat said, adding this would prevent bystanders getting hurt in standoffs between suspects and police.
The call came after a cash-delivery van in Suphan Buri was robbed by suspects at a PTT petrol station ATM in Song Phi Nong district on Nov 21.
A policeman in Chon Buri was arrested at his house on suspicion of masterminding the crime. Two other men, including the policeman's younger brother, were also detained for allegedly colluding in the robbery.
Pol Lt Gen Thitirat said that in the case of the Suphan Buri robbery, the company responsible for the cash delivery was viewed as being careless for not installing a tracking device.