Traders, including a roofer in Kent who had £3,000 worth of his tools stolen, are calling for stiffer penalties for thieves. Dennis Richardson, from Maidstone had his items stolen in the time it took to buy a coffee.
“We were out of sight for a couple of minutes at a coffee shop,” he said. “I’ve got a family, and we’ve got to eat, we’ve got to pay bills. To suddenly have to find £3,000 is not easy.”
The government will continue to work with the police “to explore ways to tackle tool theft, ensure justice for victims, and punish criminals,” it said. A bill is currently going through parliament seeking to impose harsher penalties for tool theft.
Richardson works across the southeast. He was in Dulwich in south-east London when his van was targeted. “I would say they had followed me down that road,” he said. “Every single power tool had been stolen. I stay away from certain areas of London now. It’s restricted the jobs I want to take.”
He took part in a rally in Parliament Square where campaigners will call for greater enforcement. Sussex plumber Paul Saunderson-Barker was also attending the rally. He was left “devastated” after his van had been broken into.
“They stole power tools and a thermal imaging camera,” he told the BBC. “I had over £6,000 of equipment stolen. Other self employed traders locally have rallied around to help me.”
Every year, around tens of millions of pounds worth in equipment is stolen, research from Directline insurance has found. In 2023, half of all incidents reported to police involved items taken from vehicles. Many were taken from vans which were often left damaged after the thieves targeted them.
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