Rural criminals targeting livestock and vehicles
Getty ImagesRural crime is costing farmers more in North-East England than any other part of the country but is falling in Cumbria, according to an insurance firm.
A report by NFU Mutual claimed the North East has seen a 19% increase in the theft of agricultural vehicle including excavators, dumpers and quad bikes, while the overall cost of rural crime in the region rose 7% to £7.6m in 2025
In contrast, the North West has the lowest figure of all the English regions, decreasing 7% to £2.7m. However livestock theft has risen by 30% in Cumbria - the same percentage as across the whole of the UK.
Nationwide, NFU Mutual said rural crime had dropped by 6% to £41.5m last year.
The North East chair of the National Farmers Union William Maughan, who farms near Darlington, said of vehicle thefts: "It takes a long time to replace them, but it's as much about the disruption as the financial cost.
"We've got enough things to worry about, it's just a frustration we don't need."
Jennie Dennett/BBCGreg Penellum, who has run his family farm in Millom, Cumbria, for more than 30 years, said livestock theft is threatening his future.
Three years ago he realised about 25 of the youngest sheep had "vanished".
The following year it was 35, but in the past 12 months he counted about 120 missing.
He concluded the loss was most likely due to the animals being stolen, which he said made him feel "very hurt".
"You feel it has to be somebody that understands sheep to remove them and have somewhere to take them to, and to take such great numbers," he said.
"They're doing it quite effectively - it's unsustainable from my point of view.
"If it continues, it'll be very, very financially bad.
"I just hope someone catches them or they'll have the decency to stop."
