£250k haul is taken in metal raids

Metal thieves have stolen up to £250,000 worth of gear from construction firms across Staffordshire in the past year, it was revealed today.

Wheelbarrows, cabling, power tools and heavy-duty plant vehicles were among the haul taken by thieves looking to cash in on soaring scrap prices.

Unscrupulous scrap dealers have been accused of turning a blind eye to suspicious sellers by taking cash payments and not keeping proper records, a practice that could soon be banned.

Homes, hospitals, churches, schools and even temporary traffic lights have all been stripped of metal.

According to the new figures for 2011, about 15,000 tons of metal was stolen across the UK at a cost of £770 million.

Metal cables including copper, lead and zinc, are among the most common targets for thieves targeting construction sites, although cement mixers, generators and hand tools have also been taken.

Jonathan Bullock, owner of Rugeley-based ICAD Developments, said today: "It's not unbeknown for people with grab wagons to come and just pick things up like compressors and plant vehicles.

"You can't even insure against this sort of thing and more often than not it isn't even worth claiming because the excess on the policy is so high."

Mr Bullock said his firm was targeted last summer when when thieves struck and stole about £1,000 worth of metal while work was being carried out at the John Bamford Primary School in Rugeley.

"It has a knock-on effect on production," he said."We have containers to lock things up in but they have been broken into before."

Staffordshire Police spokeswoman Sarah Davison said the force was targeting metal theft under Operation Amalgam.