Metal thefts increase security risk for Hampshire businesses

The price of scrap metal has done some interesting things over recent years, and rising figures have sent the rate of metal theft soaring. The amount of disruption and damage to the economy caused as a result of this surge is no surprise, with cabling, roofing, gates and drain covers all doing a disappearing act overnight, in all parts of the UK.

The British Transport Police’s Metal Theft Task Force (MTTF) recently made 75 arrests following a search of scrap yards in a recent ‘Week of Action’ to clamp down on metal theft. This coincided with Europol’s ‘Day of Action’ where 271 arrests across Europe were made.

Good news as this is, Hampshire homeowners and businesses are still being encouraged to be extra vigilant when it comes to safeguarding their metal as thefts of lead roofing and flashing, copper tanks, cables, metal gates and pipes are still extremely high.

So what can you do to protect your property?

Security mark your products. Hampshire Police and the Safer Forest Partnership have urged homeowners and businesses to security mark their property. Make sure you have appropriate signage informing anyone up to no good that you have this measure in place and you’ll have a strong deterrent against theft. Security markings are very difficult to remove and legitimate scrap dealers will be on the lookout for them, making an easy sell on stolen metal difficult for criminals.

Security lighting and CCTV. Make sure you have security lighting installed at front and rear entrances, and CCTV in place, with sufficient warnings to let potential thieves know you’ve taken these measures.

Rapid response team. It’s all well and good having CCTV installed, but in the event of a break-in or theft, it would be preferable to catch the perpetrators in action and retain your property than to rely on recordings to catch them or use when and if a case goes to court. By linking your CCTV to a mobile response team such as the service offered by Venture Security, we can be on site within minutes following the activation of an alarm. Our officers are fully trained and licenced and having them on standby gives criminals an extremely short window of time in which to cause damage or steal metal from your property.

Perimeter fencing. Make sure you aren’t wide open to theft. Strong and secure fencing and gates, alarms and the presence of a security guard are all wise measures. If you don’t want to employ overnight security, getting randomly-timed patrols in place is a wise move as anyone watching your premises will be deterred by the presence of uniformed officers. It’s also worth considering getting some protection for any lone workers you employ, to ensure they have the back-up they need should a burglary arise.

For more information on how to protect your home or business from metal thefts, please give our friendly team a call on 0800 021 3949.