Police Scotland has thrown down the gauntlet to Scottish farmers, urging them to adopt modern techniques to secure their vehicles, machinery and tools.
A succession of top police officers addressed a rural crime conference in Perth on Wednesday, where they outlined the measures the force has taken both locally and nationally to counter a spate of thefts of quads and other farm vehicles.
Farmers learned that Police Scotland has trained 25 mechanics in machinery dealerships across Scotland in how to install the CESAR equipment identification system, and in March, 80 police officers were trained in how to detect and identify farm vehicles that had potentially been stolen.
Police call centres have also been trained in how to better understand rural geography and farmer related issues; a national rural crime coordinator has been appointed and the force has run a series of crime awareness events.
Reports from farmers insurance company NFU Mutual that claims have dropped every month since last July indicate that the focus on tackling rural crime is starting to pay off. However, the clear message at the conference was that farmers are now being expected to play their part in making crime more difficult in rural areas.
Chief superintendent Gavin Robertson, who chairs the Scottish Partnership Against Rural Crime (SPARC) said: “We now want the industry – quad manufacturers, dealers and farmers – to help us by ensuring that every new quad in Scotland is fitted with tracking equipment as a first line of defence.
“If you’re buying a new quad, insist that CESAR is part of the package. It can also be retro fitted, not just on quads but bobcats too. Progress is being made and we’re seeing crime numbers going down already but there’s more to do. We’ll be doing further awareness raising with the farmers union.”
The chief superintendent also appealed for understanding in the farming community if legitimate quad users were stopped and their vehicles checked by trained officers.
“Be supportive. They’re not targeting you but the people who’re stealing your equipment,” he said.
He added that that if big tractors were fitted with identity devices they were four times less likely to be stolen but if they were stolen, they were six times more likely to be recovered.
Farmers were asked to consider installing a geolocator app on their mobile phones so that their co-ordinates could be easily identified when they called in an emergency or to report a crime.
