Ahead of next week’s tool theft rally in Westminster, research from construction and branding specialist Monster Mesh has found the City of London and West Yorkshire to be the areas suffering most from tool theft in the UK.
According to Monster Mesh, its data comes from freedom of information requests made to 45 different constabularies across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, of which 31 responded. The requests were specifically seeking information relating to the total number of tool thefts reported between October 2023 and September 2024.
The City of London was found to be the tool theft hotspot of the country by a concerningly wide margin, with a total of 592 instances of tool theft reported per 100,000 people, according to the City of London Police.
Despite the high number in the nation’s capital, Monster Mesh explains that this is likely due to its status as a business hub instead of a residential area, so considering its population, there is a comparatively high number of tool theft incidents. The branding specialist emphasised that visiting tradespeople should be vigilant over their tools and equipment given the number of high-value construction sites in the area.
Outside of London, West Yorkshire was the second most-impacted area for tool theft crime, with 130 instances logged per 100,000 people. Monster Mesh said that in locations along motorways, such as the region’s M62, thieves may find it easier to escape with stolen goods.
West Yorkshire was followed by the London boroughs, which saw 125 instances per 100,000 people. These rest of the areas making up the UK top ten were Bedfordshire (109 instances), Cleveland (84 instances), Hertfordshire (79), South Yorkshire (72), Northumbria (65), Humberside (64) and Lancashire (63).
Despite the freedom of information requests being made to police forces across the United Kingdom, it is notable that all ten of the tool theft hotspots are in England. In fact, several areas outside of England were found to have the lowest total number of instances of tool theft.
North Wales was found to be the “safest” region for tool theft, with only three thefts reported per 100,000 people. Monster Mesh says that it believes opportunities for tool theft are limited in the area due to its low-density population, with as few as 45 people per square mile.
This was followed by Gloucestershire, which saw five incidents per 100,000 people, Gwent (in Wales), which saw seven, and Leicestershire, which saw 12 incidents per 100,000. According to Monster Mesh, despite being a more highly populated region, Leicestershire Police have increased patrols in construction hotspots to deter theft and have used targeted outreach to tradespeople which may explain why it has been ranked as having the fourth-lowest numbers of tool theft.
The rest of the safest areas are Northern Ireland (13 instances per 100,000 people), Sussex, (14), Norfolk (16), Derbyshire (16), North Yorkshire (18) and Dorset (21).
Finally, the research also revealed the five policing regions with the highest total value of tools reportedly stolen across the year. Unsurprisingly, the top spot was taken by the Metropolitan Police Service – which polices the entirety of the London boroughs – which reported it saw a shocking £94.6m worth of tools stolen. Monster Mesh called this a “staggering figure” and says the true figure could be even higher considering the number of tool thefts that likely go unreported.
Second was West Yorkshire Police, who said £3.1m worth of tools were stolen from the area. Essex was third, with £1.7m worth of tools being taken. Northumbria was fourth, seeing £1.3m worth of tool theft incidents. Cambridgeshire was the area with the fifth-highest value of tools stolen, a figure reported to be £775,192.
Monster-Mesh founder Mark McLennan commented: “With four Police constabularies reporting over £1m of tools per year, it’s safe to say tool theft is one of the biggest and most costly problems facing construction firms and tradespeople.
Tool theft costs them far too much time, money and stress, especially given the ongoing cost of living crisis. Many just don’t have the resources to spare, which is why we wanted to warn the industry and share a range of low cost tips to help tradespeople prevent tool theft by putting their best foot forward.”
In related news, Trades United has organised a major rally hoping to raise awareness about the issue of tool theft, which is taking place in Westminster next week.
