Warning as cost of rural crime rises in south of England

The cost for rural crime in parts of southern England has spiked, bucking the national trend.

In 2021 rural theft cost Oxfordshire £844,000, up 17% from 2020 while in Berkshire there was a 47% increase in rural crime, costing local farmers more than £400,000.

Figures went down in Dorset and Hampshire, in line with the UK-wide drop of 9.3%.

But insurer NFU Mutual, which released the figures, has issued a warning.

The firm fears that rising food prices could see thefts increase further and has advised people who live in rural areas to review their security.

The cost of rural crime across the UK in 2022 is already 40% higher than the same period last year, according to the insurer.

Harvey Merrins, agent at NFU Mutual Witney, said: "With prices of essential farm equipment such as tractors and quads rising fast and the cost of diesel soaring over the past year, there's little doubt that criminals will be trying to steal from farms."

High-value farm machinery and off-road vehicles were among the items targeted by thieves in 2021, according to the insurer.

Hollie Levinge, a Berkshire farmer, had her Land Rover Defender stolen in broad daylight.

She had all her equipment, keys, animal medications and tags in the vehicle when it was stolen in March this year.

"Basically my life was in that vehicle. It was awful. It was a real bitter bitter blow," the 35-year-old from Datchet said.

She thinks the fact that farmers often live in isolated locations makes them particularly targeted by thieves.

NFU Mutual said it was working to help the police tackle crime and those living in rural areas put in place effective security measures.

Hampshire remains among the ten worst-affected counties, although the cost of rural crime across the county went from £1.3m in 2020 to £1.1m in 2021.

Last year rural theft cost Dorset £480,000, a fall of nearly 16% from 2020.

Superintendent Dean O'Connor of Dorset Police, said the force had carried out "significant investment" in its rural crime capability by increasing the number of officers.

"We want to make Dorset a hostile place for criminals, so please get in touch with us if you have any intelligence about suspected criminality," he added.

Security measures, rural crime initiatives, quieter roads and community vigilance all played their part in suppressing countryside crime across the UK in the last year, according to NFU Mutual.

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