Farmers and growers are being advised to redouble their security measures as record fuel prices, and high demand coupled with supply-chain issues for vehicles and machinery, are being blamed for a huge jump in rural crime.
The latest rural crime report from specialist insurer NFU Mutual shows the cost of rural crime rose 40% in the first quarter of this year, after falling during 2020 and 2021 because pandemic lockdowns made it more difficult for criminals to operate unnoticed.
Farm vehicles and machinery, GPS equipment and fuels are the items most stolen. Thefts of diesel and heating oil have more than doubled compared with the same period last year.
The company said the increasing value of farm machinery and vehicles is what makes them so desirable to thieves and why it invests in initiatives to protect farmers and growers.
Rebecca Davidson, rural affairs specialist at NFU Mutual, said: “With prices of essential farm equipment rising fast and the cost of diesel soaring over the past year, there’s little doubt criminals will be trying to steal from farms and nurseries.”
The company spent £430,000 last year on a range of initiatives to tackle rural crime. A series of grants to police forces to tackle GPS theft saw the cost of this particular crime almost halve.
The NFU Mutual’s advice to farmers and growers includes:
- Remove keys from vehicles whenever they are left; fit tracking devices and immobilisers.
- Keep vehicles and machinery in locked stores, with keys stored securely.
- Indelibly mark kit and keep a log of equipment serial numbers.
- Use PIN numbers and strong passwords to protect GPS and other computer equipment.
- Fit locks or alarms to fuel tanks.
- Check the provenance of any equipment you buy in case it’s stolen.
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