Devon and Cornwall Police Rural Affairs Team is urging farmers to be extra vigilant in regard to their quads after several reported cases of quad and motorbike thefts in the area recently.
The rural affairs team is advising farmers to park quads in locked sheds and remove the key to the vehicle when it is not in use.
The force also advised farmers to fit trackers and/or immobilisers, have their machinery property marked, record the vehicle identification (VIN) and engine numbers, and photograph all equipment.
Farmers should also consider increasing yard security, for example alarms, CCTV, effective lighting, and locking yards gates and sheds.
Registering equipment with the free national property register and the equipment register is also a deterrent to theft, according to the police.
In addition to these measures, the police recommended that farmers join Farm Watch, the tural affair’s community messaging system, as well as local community groups to stay up-to-date with latest crime.
Devon and Cornwall Police urged farmers and the public to report suspicious activity in their area to the force via online or by calling 101.
Rural crime
The Nation Farmers Union Mutual (NFU) 2025 Rural Crime Report revealed that rural crime cost the UK an estimated £44.1 million in 2024.
Quad bikes and ATVs remained the top targets for thieves despite quad thefts falling by 16%, according to the report, with the group stating that quad bikes are being stolen from farmers’ yards and then used to commit crimes in other parts of the country.
The total claims cost for agricultural vehicle thefts as a whole fell by 35% to approximately £7 million, despite tractor thefts rising by 17% as criminals took both machines and parts.
Trailer thefts also rose by 15%, according to the report, with a total cost of £1.3 million worth of trailers stolen.
The midlands, despite the cost of crime in the region falling 31% in 2024 to £8.1 million, remains the area with the highest valuation for goods stolen.
This is followed by the North East and South East with a matching figure of £7.1 million worth of stolen goods.
The price of rural crime was down across all of the UK between 2023 and 2024, except for Wales, which experienced a 18% rise in cost of theft.
