The Farmers Mart Aug/Sep 2016 - Issue 47 | Page 77

Security Assessing the impact of rural crime » EVERY YEAR RURAL CRIME costs millions of pounds and causes untold anxiety across the UK, which is why leading rural insurers NFU Mutual analyses its claims data annually to assess the state of crime in rural communities. NFU’s 2015 data reveals that the cost of rural crime to the UK has reached £42.5 million. Rural theft cost an estimated £42.5m in the UK during 2015 - a slight increase (0.4%) from 2014. The worst affected regions remain the North East and East of England, costing £7.9 and £6.9 million. The Midlands and Northern Ireland saw the biggest rises, on 2014, with costs increasing by 10% and 13%. Scotland and the South East however saw positive reductions of 6% and 9%. Scotland also has the lowest cost or rural crime, £1.7 million, closely followed by Wales, costing £2 million. Tractors proved particularly vulnerable in the East and North East of England where a spate of high value thefts occurred and accounted for almost half of the total cost across the UK. The costs of quad bike (ATV) theft saw a 6% reduction, with Scotland seeing an impressive 40% drop following a large scale initiative to provide specialist training to affected police forces. Livestock rustling remains a huge problem with costs stubbornly high in Northern Ireland and the North East and South West of England. At a total cost to the UK of £2.9 million, 70% came from these three regions alone. Equine tack and equipment thefts have reduced by 41% – a huge reduction seen across almost every region. This is testament to Horse Watch Schemes now in operation across the UK. Based on claims experience over the previous 12 months, NFU Mutual agencies were TOP FIVE TARGETED ITEMS NATIONALLY: • ATV / Quad Bikes • Machinery • Farm and commercial tools • Garden equipment • Livestock TOP FIVE TYPES OF CRIME NATIONALLY: • Vehicle theft • Burglary • Rural Business Theft • Livestock Theft • Vandalism asked to rank the items which were most commonly targeted by thieves in their area. Results were totalled across the whole country to reveal a UK-wide top ten. Source: NFU Mutual Quality Helaform sliding door systems have been sold by Barrier Components since 1987. Ideal for industrial and agricultural sliding doors, their range of galvanized and stainless steel systems provide robust hanging system solutions for doors up to 2000kg in weight. Tel: [phone] [email protected] www.barrier-components.co.uk www.farmers-mart.co.uk Aug/Sep 2016 77