PREVENTING RURAL CRIME
As a property owner, you can reduce the risk of rural crime and your likelihood of falling victim by adhering to straight forward measures to safeguard your land, equipment, and livestock. These include:
• Improving farm and household security
• Protecting your livestock
• Agistment and horses
• Protecting your equipment
• Maintaining your safety
• Reporting suspicious activity
• Knowing your important contacts
Read more about the simple steps you can take today to ensure your safety and protection.
1. Improve Farm & Household Security
Install sensor lights around buildings and structures where possible to deter criminals
Install light timers inside the main house or sheds
Install an alarm and surveillance camera to cover your house, sheds, garages, livestock and other storage facilities
Ensure your alarms and surveillance cameras are operational and monitored, and surveillance footage is stored safely
Display crime prevention signage
Ensure visitors can be seen before access is allowed
2. Protect Your Equipment
Make a detailed inventory of your machinery and equipment, including make, serial numbers and identifying features with photographs
Ensure all vehicles, machinery and equipment are all insured and registered
Engrave or mark your equipment
Never leave keys to vehicles or machinery in the ignition or nearby
Ensure your fencing is secure and external gates have locks
Keep receipts for all machinery and equipment
Ensure windows and doors to storage facilities are always closed, secure and locked
Maintain regular inventory checks of stock and materials
3. Protect Your Livestock
Count and record livestock regularly
Keep records and receipts of any livestock purchased as proof of ownership
Tag, brand or electronically identify livestock
Register and microchip household pets
Consider photographing or videoing your livestock regularly to assist with identification
4. Agistment & Horses
Install CCTV on Arena to monitor falls, feed deliveries and agistment areas
Install CCTV to monitor sick horses in stables or paddocks
Install CCTV to monitor foaling paddocks
Install Signage to ensure gates remain closed and lock
Eliminate any tripping hazards for people or horses
5. Maintain Your Safety
Ensure fuel tanks are located within sight of your main house, secured and locked
Keep chemicals, fertilisers and other dangerous goods stored in locked areas
Record descriptions, batch numbers and expiry dates of chemicals and fertilisers
Programme telephones with emergency contacts such as police, Crime Stoppers and neighbours
Secure firearms and ensure there are no tools nearby that could be used to open the firearm storage
6. Report Suspicious Activity
Contact local police or Crime Stoppers if you see or hear of unusual movements of stock (by unknown people or vehicles)
Record the time, date and location, description of people or vehicles and notify police as soon as possible
If you notice the theft of any livestock, machinery or equipment, advise police immediately
