Rural crime in England has increased year on year, with £17.9million-worth of machinery stolen last year compared to £12.6million of claims in 2006 – although Country Life’s Voice of the Countryside survey revealed that 67% of the public still maintains that the country is a much safer place to live than the city.
NFU Mutual says that there has been an increased number of thefts of quad bikes, tractors, diesel and heating oil in England, although, for the rest of the UK, theft of farm machinery fell by around 50%.
Other claims:
In Scotland, the cost of claims fell from £2.9million to just over £1.4m
In Wales, the cost was almost £2m – down from £2.7m
Northern Ireland’s claims fell from £1.1m in 2006 to under £500,000 last year
NFU Mutual did not reveal the number of incidences of rural crimes involved in the £17.9million figure.
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