FUNDING by the Construction Plant-hire Association (CPA) and other organisations is having a direct impact on the successful recovery of stolen plant equipment, according to police superintendent Andy Huddleston, who heads up the National Rural Crime Unit and the National Construction & Agriculture Theft Team (NCATT).
Late last year, the CPA made a three-year commitment to fund £90,000 to help fight plant equipment theft and fraud, which is reportedly costing the construction plant industry millions every year. With additional funding from the Construction Equipment Association (CEA), CESAR donors and insurers, a total of £650,000 is being contributed to help fund NCATT – a specialist team of officers covering the whole of the country to help tackle the theft of construction plant and equipment by organised criminal groups.
Police superintendent Andy Huddleston said, “Just one example of what we do was the excellent work to identify a lorry load of stolen plant and through police contacts stop it before it was loaded onto a ferry to be taken out of the country late one night. Eight stolen machines were found, including six that were taken from an auction site in Yorkshire. This comes directly on the back of the funding given to us by the CPA, CEA, CESAR donors and insurers.
“The newly created NCATT is already making a huge difference in helping recover stolen plant which is becoming even more prevalent. In this calendar year up to April, we have successfully recovered stolen plant and equipment worth over £1.7 million, and the total value of the unit’s recoveries in 2023 was over £6.1 million. We are a small unit and whilst we can’t support every theft investigation, what we are able to do is making a tangible difference and I thank the industry for its crucial support in helping us do this.”
The CPA revealed it is also helping members recover stolen equipment by sharing information. In a recent instance, all CPA members were notified of the theft of a low loader full of kit. Within 24 hours, the stolen equipment was found by a fellow CPA member, leading to its recovery.
CPA president Brian Jones added, “It’s excellent news that our funding is helping lead to the recovery of stolen plant, which is a massive problem costing our industry huge amounts of money, stress and lost revenue. We have over 1,900 members at the CPA and we feel it’s very important that the membership funds go back towards helping them.
“Theft and fraud have a significant and increasingly damaging effect on our members’ businesses and our £90,000 contribution to the work of NCATT will bring immediate, tangible benefits to our members in preventing and detecting criminal activity and the recovery of illegally obtained plant-hire equipment.”
