Farm shop owners have been put on alert following a spate of “highly organised” raids on rural businesses in England and Wales.
NFU Mutual has advised farm shop owners to review their security after raids on six shops in Staffordshire, Cheshire and West Yorkshire over the past month.
The rural insurer believes organised gangs are targeting the shops in north-west England and the West Midlands because of their remote locations.
See also: Police set up spy cameras to snare rural criminals
In each raid, the thieves appear to know the layout of the shop and, in most cases, have been able to avoid triggering alarm systems.
David Harrison, sector lead for farming at NFU Mutual, said: “While farm shop break-ins are sadly not a new phenomenon, because of their remote locations, we haven’t had a series of highly organised raids like this before.”
‘Cased the joint’
Denstone farm shop, near Uttoexeter in Staffordshire and run by Rupert and Emma Evans, was hit by thieves who managed to break in and steal takings from the shop safe, despite a high-tech alarm system.
Mr Evans, who is also chairman of the Farm Retail Association, said: “A window was smashed to gain entry.
“CCTV footage shows figures in dark clothes and balaclavas crawling across the floor to avoid triggering the alarm system going straight to the safe and emptying it in minutes.
“They knew the layout of the business, so it appears very likely that they ‘cased the joint’ before the attack.”
Mr Evans said it was “hugely unsettling” to think the criminals had possibly been in the shop to scope it out before returning to break in.
Two previous attempts to steal from the shop were thwarted by the alarm system going off.
The shop opened 14 years ago and has expanded from a small business in a milking parlour to a purpose-built premises with a 100-seat café.
Emma’s parents run the nearby beef and arable enterprise, and supply the farm shop with produce.
Police advice
Meanwhile, North Wales Police has sent an alert following recent break-ins near the towns of Mold and Wrexham.
A force spokesperson said: “Please take positive steps to protect your property, such as installing alarms, CCTV and passive infrared lighting.
“Padlock entrance gates to your property if possible.
“Empty the tills at night and make sure no cash or valuables are left overnight. Be wary of suspicious activity during the day and, if safe to do so, record registration numbers and report to the police.”
NFU Mutual farm shop security checklist
- Make sure passive infrared sensors are not concealed by shelving that reduces their full operating angle
- Ensure that the detectors have not been tampered with if they are in an area of public access
- Consider installing internal door sensors (not just external perimeter doors and windows) and ensure that movement detectors are duplicated where possible if all entry points cannot be protected
- Install window sensors on external fixed panes of glass (not just opening windows and doors)
- Reduce your cash on site by banking more frequently – also consider any on-site vending machines and remove the cash cassettes each night
- Safes should be fixed to the ground in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions
- Check the amount insured in your safe and make sure your insurers recognise your safe
- If possible, move transactions to a cashless form to reduce the theft risk
- Change your alarm code regularly and deactivate any older or lost fobs
- For lightweight structures, consider installing a more robust inner security area where target stock can be retained overnight
- Consider CCTV coverage with remote monitoring or links to mobiles to confirm any alarm activations
- Ensure, where possible, that target stock items such as alcohol are kept to a minimum if on display
