Every year horses, ponies and equine equipment worth hundreds of thousands of pounds are stolen across the country. It has been reported that over 10,000 horses are stolen each year in the UK and thousands of pounds worth of insurance claims are made for stolen tack, horseboxes and trailers.

Rural crime not only causes financial hardship and impact on insurance premiums but also impacts food prices and damages local communities and livelihoods. 

Research by NFU Mutual outlined the key trends over the year and highlighted the sharp rise in the value of organised crime (£54million), with thieves targeting high value equipment and livestock.

The Cube operates to combat rural crime and is a device that works with a roaming SIM and is lithium battery-powered (no mains power or WiFi required). The Cube provides an instant alert of any disturbances happening in areas and on items you wish to protect. This information can be shared with the police, giving them important evidence at the same time the crime is being carried out. 

Protect your high value items from theft and don’t become a victim of rural crime. Horse(s), saddles, horse boxes, jumps and arena equipment, quad bikes, rugs, feed & supplements, generators and farm machinery are all high-ticket items often found at equestrian facilities and are particularly attractive to thieves. 

With a Cube at gate entrances, stables, tack room doors and vehicles, any disturbances to the shock sensor tags or to the device itself will send an instant alert to your phone which you can escalate to the police if needed. If an item with the Cube attached is moved, such as a horsebox or trailer, the Cube can be GPS tracked and repatriated to its rightful owner. 

This gives assurance that horses and tack are in a secured and monitored environment.

The Cube doubles as an effective pest control solution where the shock sensors can be attached to a trap device and can send footage back to the cube. This will alert you to the times and levels of rodent activity, giving you the information to act appropriately.  

Rodents in feed rooms ruin expensive horse feed and have the potential to spread disease and infection to horses and those using the facility, including children. They can also cause serious and expensive damage to other items such as saddles and leather items found in tack rooms. 

In order for a product or service to have a Police Recommendation, that product needs to submitted to a thorough vetting procedure. ‘Secured by Design’ are the official company to carry out this procedure.

uWatch’s Cube has been vetted and approved by Secured by Design and has been categorised under “Crime Reporting & CCTV“

Secured by Design was created in 1989, and initially focused on windows and door security. Working with manufacturers, industry bodies, and certification bodies they helped to drive up standards in design and manufacture and security.

They have also worked with Government, to drive crime prevention methods into the planning process for all housing projects.

The company employs ‘Designing Out Crime Officers’. Their job is to work with developers, architects, town planners, local authorities to reduce the potential for criminal activity at the planning stage.

There are over 700 member companies approved by Secured by Design. They in turn have thousands of products that have achieved the Police Preferred Specification. uWatch is one of these companies.

Whilst uWatch has this accreditation, it does not automatically mean a Police Recommendation. The independent Police Constabularies in England and Wales, Police Scotland and the Police Service of Northern Ireland retain that right.

uWatch has worked with a number of Police Forces across the UK, attending and supporting over 30 Local and Rural Crime roadshows. Speaking to Rural Crime officers, landowners, farmers and businesses that could benefit from a product like The Cube.

If you planning a local event, whether you are Rural Crime Officer or a Local Farmers organisation – please get in touch.

Contact Louis Bennet, Product Manager either by email or call 01491 651 229 and let us discuss your requirements.