The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Community => Coffee Lounge => Topic started by: katie on March 01, 2011, 01:32:18 pm

Title: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: katie on March 01, 2011, 01:32:18 pm
Last week they tried to steal our wooden gate, today we arrived to find 2 energisers and their batteries had been taken in the night. The irony is that we actually have planning permission to live on the land.The planning was granted in November. Since then we have been waiting for the discharge of conditions (which entailed us doing a site map and describing the canopy spread etc of every tree on the site - all 11 acres). As the 2 people involved only work half the week (different halves), it takes months for anything to be done. I've a good mind to send a bill for the stolen goods to the Council - not that it would get me very far.
I am so FED UP!
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: doganjo on March 01, 2011, 01:35:18 pm
It would make them take notice of your problem though, and maybe get someone else to help with the workload so you could get your conditions met sooner.  Can't you start the build anyway?  I had conditions but went ahead with building and so long as all conditions are met at the time of the completion certificate being applied for it's OK.
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: Brucklay on March 01, 2011, 01:38:23 pm
Are you new to the area Katie? Give the council a chase if you can to get going - someone around us wasn't happy with our plans and we had 2 walking sticks stolen out of the 2nd paddock - no great value but both were made for me by my father-in-law and I used them every day rounding up the ducks - so petty - best of luck
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: robert waddell on March 01, 2011, 01:53:46 pm
if you have permission to stay on the land(presuming a caravan) just do it     the fact that the site is insecure should be enough to sway the argument in your favour especially since you have had property stolen
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: Helencus on March 01, 2011, 03:34:59 pm
That's so bxxxdy annoying Katie. I'd get a caravan on there asap. You can't have anything nowadays without Nailing it down thieving baxxards!
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: plumseverywhere on March 01, 2011, 04:07:40 pm
oh no not again? really sorry Katie  >:(
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: knightquest on March 01, 2011, 08:35:49 pm
Sorry to hear your news. Thieving B*s*a*ds! They should have their theiving hands chopped off!

Ian
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: Sandy on March 01, 2011, 08:39:19 pm
B*ggars!!! wheres Rustyme????? when you  need him???
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: little blue on March 01, 2011, 09:03:44 pm
theiving gits!  how annoying....
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: katie on March 01, 2011, 09:21:39 pm
Thanks for the sympathy and advice. I will chase up the council -this is ridiculous. We are also thinking of lots of ways to make our stuff more difficult to steal. Apparently a lot of farms and stables in our area lost this sort of thing last night.
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: Sandy on March 01, 2011, 09:38:22 pm
 You can get those wired alarms that when the wire is broken a load noise is emitted!!! Bit like a bike lock wire!!! I too would be thinking about ways of making life hard for them...if things are locked together it would make the thief work harder and longer to take anything!!! Other than illegal Bear Traps, getting a wild boar or Bull to roam the land  ??? ???
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: egbert on March 01, 2011, 09:41:32 pm
Sorry you are having so much trouble! Thieving bu**ers   >:(
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: doganjo on March 01, 2011, 10:18:27 pm
If you've got power up there buy some PIR floodlights, if not put a dog kennel in the middle and notices all round saying beware of the dog with photos of a rottweiler.  ;D

Seriously though, get building, but take out house builders - one off insurance payment - about £600 for the length of the build, and sort out the conditions at the same time,  Then you've covered all bases.
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: northfifeduckling on March 02, 2011, 10:24:46 pm
If it's not only you at least it's not personal! report any theft to the police, too, even if they can't get your things back - but let them know!  :&>
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: katie on March 03, 2011, 09:07:52 am
Yes, I must admit I felt a bit better knowing it wasn't just us who had been hit! We've reported it and got a crime munber so that's about as far as it will go, I should think! ::)
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: northfifeduckling on March 03, 2011, 09:40:31 am
we had a period of metal being nicked from people's properties, sadly this happens... :&>
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: Anke on March 03, 2011, 10:04:13 am
These people will have to scout out the possibilities during daytime - just start writing down number plates etc of any suspicious cars, especially vans. I have started doing that, also if I see someone parking/stopping at the end of our driveway I make a point of going past and looking at them hard. So far so good....

And I would also second that you will need to take out buildings insurance for the time during the build, we did that, as our builder advised us. We did at that time not live on site either. If you can move on in a caravan and get yourself a noisy dog, doesn't need to be big, but it helps.
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: doganjo on March 03, 2011, 12:52:17 pm
It's not plain buildings insurance you need.  If you are building a house and not having it built by a company you will need 'self build' insurance
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: Hilarysmum on March 03, 2011, 02:04:18 pm
Could you take very ostentatious photos of number plate and driver of any vehicles parked near your property?  Might put someone off.
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: katie on March 09, 2011, 05:45:24 pm
In what is getting to be a boring update, we were burgled again last night. They took the remaining energiser from a locked shed and broke into the barn and stole a generator. We have another incident number and I think we are to be visited by the CSOs. That's that sorted then!
After last week's incident, we wrote to planning and asked for the condition to be discharged as a matter of urgency as we were being targeted by thieves. We received a phone call from the planning officer to say she couldn't discharge the condition as we hadn't provided the relevant paperwork. In fact, we had dropped it off at the planning office two weeks previously. Goodness knows where it went. Enough to make you weep.
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: Hilarysmum on March 09, 2011, 05:48:52 pm
If you have copies of the relevant paperwork, take it in and get a signature for it.  Also send a second copy but again recorded delivery for a signature.  I really sympathise.
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: robert waddell on March 09, 2011, 05:58:16 pm
we had the misfortune to be advised by the crime prevention officers other than shinny shoes a complete waste of time and tax payers money just did not have a clue no wonder crime is on the increase they could not catch a cold (was going to use a more descriptive term but showing restraint)
Title: Re: The thieves have visited - again!
Post by: smiley bucket on December 13, 2012, 10:05:21 pm
what happened after this?  Are you living onsite now?