Police offer fresh advice after Wealden burglaries

The burglaries, from a farm in Muddles Green in Chiddingly and from an outbuilding in Eridge Road in Frant, were both reported in the early hours of Monday January 23.

Police say a generator, three chainsaws, two whacker plates, a battery pack, a hydraulic breaker and a Ifor Williams trailer were reported stolen from the Eridge Road burglary while a Ifor Williams livestock trailer was reported as stolen from Muddles Green.

As both saw the theft of Ifor Williams brand trailers, police would like to draw attention to the company’s free database search service where those buying a trailer can check if a trailer has been reported as stolen.

Each Ifor Williams trailer is fitted with an ID plate which has a unique serial number etched on it. The drawbar also has a different unique number cut through it, which the company says is ‘virtually impossible to alter’ without noticeably affecting the appearance of the numbers.

A free-of charge check can be made to see whether the horse trailer is registered as stolen on the database, that the serial number matches the horse trailer type and that the seller matches the registered owner.

To request a check call the Customer Care Department on 01490 412626, quote the horse trailer’s serial number and seller details.

If you’re the owner of an Ifor Williams horse trailer owner that’s been stolen, Sussex Police ask that you register it by calling 01490 412626 so that the above checks can be carried out.

Owners of other trailer makes, can contact The National Plant and Equipment Register (TER) with which all Ifor Williams horse trailers are also registered.

Potential purchases can be checked against these records for a fee of £25 by calling 01225 464599.

Of 9,900 horse trailers currently on TER’s stolen equipment database, 2,725 are stock and horse trailers.

Police are also drawing attention to other schemes including Trailermark and Datatag.

Trailermark uses large, self-adhesive lettering to allow horse trailer owners to put their own code on their trailer’s roof, in an effort to make it highly conspicuous.

Trailermark keeps a database of all these numbers, alongside owners’ details, to help with tracking.

Data Tag, meanwhile, uses state-of-the-art identification technology to mark your horse trailer in a way that’s virtually impossible for a thief to detect, but that police will be able to identify and trace back to the registered owner. Manufacturers offering in-built Data Tag technology as standard for new horse trailers include Ifor Williams, Fautras, Rice, Wessex and Pegasus.

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