Ireland and the UK are “attractive destinations” for stolen trailers, according to the Equipment Register (TER) – Europe’s largest database of plant and equipment.
TER said this is because Ireland and the UK are the only two European countries that do not require trailers to be registered as vehicles in their own right.
Data director at TER, Treve Jenkyn, said Ireland and the UK tend to be the destinations for stolen trailers because there is no paperwork to complete for registration or transfer of ownership.
According to the organisation 8% of TER’s checks come from Ireland – of which 90% are for machines or trailers in the UK.
Jenkyn believes it is worth Irish owners registering their trailer details and checking trailers (pre-purchase) with TER to confirm they are not stolen.
TER recently reported that 10% of checks undertaken on its database, which includes 850,000 trailers, match stolen items.
These findings match up with the latest rural crime data from NFU Mutual, which showed that trailer thefts saw the biggest increase in 2022 when compared with other types of rural crime, with figures up 66%.
The report found that soaring second-hand market values and higher finance costs were fuelling the trend for thieves to target trailers to sell them to Eastern Europe.
They are often moved via Ireland since the UK and Ireland allow trailers to be registered with the towing number, not their own registration plates, TER said.
Trailer thefts
Jenkyn said that trailer owners are facing increasing obstacles to prevent theft.
“Thieves are using technologies such as drones and trackers to identify trailers to steal, even when they are supposedly stored securely on a farm’s premises.
“Thieves put their trackers on target trailers to identify location for easy theft. They are also using social media sites like Facebook Marketplace to sell stolen equipment.
“Buyers, dealers and auction houses, as well as the police and insurance companies check with TER the criminal status of trailers that come their way.
“So registering a vehicle can help to reunite stolen goods with their owners much more quickly."
