Copper Theft: Why Do Thieves Take the Risk?

Metal theft is a growing problem for homeowners and businesses in the UK. This type of crime is on the rise and can result in a lot of time and expensive for victims. Lead and copper theft are two of the most common examples and instances of these crimes have been on the rise for the last few years.

A Risky Venture

Thieves can take some big risks to steal metals. Not only do they risk getting caught and prosecuted but they could also be risking their lives as well. Copper is used in a number of potentially dangerous sectors including power supply and rail networks. In order to steal copper thieves may have to access highly restricted areas and put their lives in danger from electric shock, fast moving trains and more. Weighing up these potential hazards it can seem strange to others why anyone would take big risks to steal metal.

Big Money Rewards

The simple fact though is that basic metals are in more demand now than ever before. New rapidly growing industries in countries like China and India have placed a huge strain on the world’s precious resources. Metal prices are rising rapidly year-on-year and this means scrap metals prices are on the rise too. Therefore it is becoming more and more profitable for thieves to steal metal and sell it on for scrap.

For example in 2001 scrap metal prices were on average around $77 per ton. In just seven years this had risen to nearly $500 per ton. These rising prices also corresponded with a rise in scrap metal theft and by 2008 figures showed that this was one of the fastest growing crimes in the UK, costing businesses and homeowners in the UK over £350m per annum.

A Guaranteed Profit

A key motivating factor behind copper theft is that it has extrinsic value. This means it is worth a guaranteed amount as a raw commodity, no matter what state or form it is in. Other items such as cars or antiques have intrinsic value and this can be hard to define and can vary according to many different factors. This means thieves can never really be sure whether they will make a profit or not. Also items with intrinsic value are often more easy to identify.

Metals are valuable as a raw commodity and can be melted down for scrap. This makes them almost impossible to trace and their extrinsic value offers a guaranteed profit to thieves.

Protect Your Metal

It is important to implement good security to help prevent metal theft. Whether you are a homeowner or a construction company you need to protect your sites from thieves looking to cash in on your metal. Metals such as copper, bronze, lead and aluminium can all attract metal thieves. Installing security systems such as perimeter alarms, CCTV systems and motion-detection lights can all help to reduce the risks of metal theft and there are many specialist security solution providers online that can help if you are unsure of what you need.