Agriculture hit with £52m bill as thieves target farm sites

Statistics show a six per cent overall increase in so-called “agri-crime” in 2011, with the high price of certain farming commodities proving alluring to thieves.

The figures, produced by rural insurer NFU Mutual, showed a fall in tractor thefts in England and Wales; thieves shifted their focus to livestock, diesel and metal.

While power tools and All Terrain Vehicles remain firm favourites with rural criminals, emerging trends such as metal theft are being carried out on such a large scale that even an 11 per cent drop in the theft of tractors has been engulfed by the cost of replacing items that can be scrapped or resold for a fraction of their worth.

Another new trend highlighted by the survey was theft of agrochemicals, with NFU Mutual branch staff in arable farming areas noting thieves are now targeting farm chemical stores to steal pesticides and herbicides which can cost more than £600 for 10 litres.

The cost of theft from UK farms in 2010 was an estimated £49.7m.

A spokesman said: “The survey suggests poor economic conditions and rising commodity prices are the two main factors behind the steady rise in rural crime over the last 12 months.”

In all more than three quarters of agents said that they believed members are more concerned about rural crime in their area compared with 12 months ago.Farmers are refusing to take it lying down.

Lindsay Sinclair, Group Chief Executive of NFU Mutual, said: “It is a sad fact but the countryside has long been seen as an easy target for criminals. Encouragingly, country folk are not taking the blight lying down, fighting back with both high-tech security measures as well as more innovative schemes.

“As the UK’s leading rural insurer, we are committed to keeping our members up-to-date with emerging trends and promoting great examples of crime prevention. Working together we can make it much more difficult for criminals to succeed in the countryside.”

The survey reveals that NFU Mutual agents and claims staff believe high-tech security measures like CCTV and tracker devices, as well as physical security measures such as locks and alarms are more effective than a greater police presence or tougher sentencing for criminals.

The new data comes after the Yorkshire Post reported last month that one in three farmers in the region had been a victim of a crime last year.

The National Farmers Union, which compiled the data, is running its Give Rural Crime the Boot campaign to encourage more people to come forward if they are the victim of crime.

The theft of vehicles and machinery from farms has become more prevalent in recent years with the machinery commonly broken up and sold on the black market, often being shipped off to as far away as Africa.

While most of these rural crimes were reported to the police, a total of 28 per cent questioned by the NFU said they had not notified officers, or had only done so for some incidents.

The NFU is working with all four Yorkshire police forces to promote practical crime prevention measures and encourage greater collaboration between the police and local farming communities.

Its regional director Barney Kay said: “The survey we carried out with our members provided a useful snapshot of farmers’ experiences of crime and clearly highlighted the need for concerted action. After all, incidents not only affect farmers’ ability to put food on our tables, but also cause farming families to feel exposed and vulnerable.

“There was recognition that the police do what they can with the resources available. Nevertheless there was a clear message from nearly half those interviewed (44 per cent) that not enough police resources are devoted to tackling rural crime. This is something we have to take seriously and that’s why we are putting extra resources into our new campaign.”