Rural crime across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight cost £1,240,000 last year, according to leading rural insurer NFU Mutual’s latest Rural Crime Report.
Across the UK, rural raiders got more ‘bang for their buck’ as they turned their focus onto smaller, high-value targets including farming GPS systems.
Other rural crimes, including dog attacks on livestock and fly-tipping rose sharply across the UK. The value of sheep and cattle attacked by dogs shot up by 10% in 2020 to £1.3million in a year, which saw a surge in pet ownership and countryside visits.
Fly-tipping in fields, gateways and country lanes reached epidemic proportions as waste recycling centres restricted access, leaving farmers to deal with the clean-up and risks to their health and that of their livestock and the environment.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight NFU adviser James FitzGerald has said:
“Even though crime has dropped during the pandemic, rural crime has still been taking place across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight and it continues to impact rural communities. We welcome the greater collaboration between forces in tackling serious and organised crime gangs targeting high value equipment – and we continue to remind our members of steps they must take to protect GPS kits and quad bikes, in particular.
“Sadly, we’ve seen an upsurge in the number of dog attacks on livestock. However, we are heartened by the approach of Hampshire Constabulary, which takes these incidents seriously and always seeks to investigate. Earlier this year, a professional dog walker was successfully prosecuted and fined, the case serving as a warning to others to use a lead when walking dogs near farm animals.”
Hampshire Constabulary’s Rural Crime Inspector, Korine Bishop, adds:
“We welcome the findings of NFU Mutual’s report into rural crime and we remain committed to tackling rural crime and anti-social behaviour in our local rural communities.
“While the enforced Government restriction across a number of lockdown periods certainly played its role in reducing the level of crime in certain areas across the county, unfortunately, there were still small influxes of individuals using the countryside and rural areas inappropriate – including incidents of fly-tipping, livestock worrying and other such matters.
“Our officers have also been working tirelessly over the last 12 months to identify those responsible for a rise in theft of quad bikes and ATV vehicles – targeting organised criminal gangs who often work cross-border in an attempt to steal these valuables. The impact that this has on farmers and landowners is not lost on us, and that is why we have conducted numerous operations across North Hampshire to disrupt this criminality.
“We will be working alongside our core partner agencies in the coming weeks and months to bring those responsible for various acts of rural crime to justice.”
Click here to access the NFU Mutual Rural Crime Report 2021.
