Video: CCTV captures GPS kit being stolen

Thieves stole four tractor domes and a GPS screen from a Leicestershire arable and poultry farmer.

Will Oliver said two men took £25,000 worth of kit in the overnight raid at his farm near Market Bosworth on Thursday 18 May.

The men entered the farmyard on foot around midnight and were captured on CCTV breaking into three tractors and a sprayer, stealing four John Deere 6000 domes and a JD 4640 screen.

See also: GPS theft rate doubles between January and April 2023

“It’s a really busy yard surrounded by CCTV cameras. You’d never have thought someone would have the confidence to just come in and take these goods at any time of day,” said Mr Oliver.

The theft of such valuable items severely delayed fertiliser spreading and crop spraying on the farm this weekend, until Mr Oliver’s local dealer was able to loan him a spare dome on Sunday 21 May, when fieldwork resumed.

He said removing the kit from the tractors after use every night would be very time-consuming, plus workers would need to recalibrate the kit each day.

Insurance considerations

“Our insurance company tells us the domes are covered if they are on the machines, but we’d have to take out a separate insurance policy if we take them off the tractors,” he added.

A farming neighbour was targeted on the same night and had Trimble GPS systems stolen. Other local farms have also since been hit.

Mr Oliver said he believed organised criminals were stealing these domes and GPS screens to order. He reported the theft to the police, who have visited his farm and made a report.

It is the second time his farm has been targeted by tractor GPS thieves in a high-value raid. In 2017, £35,000 worth of tractor GPS kit was stolen.

The cost of GPS theft increased by 30% in the first quarter of 2023, compared with the same period last year, according to rural insurer NFU Mutual.