Suffolk farmer Matthew Knight was down with Covid when thieves struck at his farm.

They made off with the Global Positioning System (GPS) from his New Holland tractor leaving him unable to work his 600-acre arable farm.

In the end, he had to rely on a neighbour and contractors to get him through until the damaged system could be repaired and replaced.

The latest study by farm insurers NFU Mutual shows that the cost of crime has shot up - and GPS theft is among the key drivers.

The cost of rural theft in the East of England rose by 8.4% between 2022 and 2023, taking it from £6.6m to £7.1m. Across the UK, it rose from £50.6m in 2022 to an estimated £52.8m in 2023, it found.

Matthew discovered the theft when he returned to his barn a few days after he came down with Covid.

He discovered thieves had smashed the cab window of his tractor and stolen the cab roof-mounted dome, nav controller, display screen and receiver unit.

The tractor wiring loom was also damaged, as the thieves had cut through wires to remove the system.

It took a month to get a replacement GPS supplied and fitted to the tractor. The GPS uses satellite guidance to precisely guide tractors and combines, and control operations such as cultivating land, planting crops and spraying right through to harvest.

Now Matthew removes the GPS dome from the tractor every night and stores it securely off-site, together with the other parts of the system.

But he is concerned that climbing up to detach the dome from the cab roof is a safety risk - particularly in the dark.

Matthew and Alyson Knight have run their arable farm for more than 25 years and grow wheat, barley and other arable crops. 

It's not the first time thieves have struck at their farm. In previous raids they have lost a quad bike, a Polaris all-terrain-vehicle (ATV) and numerous hand tools.  

“The theft of the GPS system meant a neighbour had to come in to get the drilling work finished and we had to employ contractors to get the crop spraying done,” said Matthew.

“I try to keep calm about these sort of incidents, but it’s very frustrating. Combined with other farming problems, setbacks like this are very disheartening and can start to make you think it’s not worth carrying on farming.”

NFU Mutual said GPS units were targeted by gangs throughout 2023 - causing the value of claims it dealt with to rocket by 137% to an estimated £4.2m.

Intelligence shows thieves frequently target several farms in one night before moving locations to steal the kits - often revisiting farmyards weeks later to steal any replacements.

The hi-tech equipment typically costs more than £10,000 a unit and without it, farmers and agricultural contractors can face severe delays and disruption to harvesting and cultivating work.

Quad bikes and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) were also top targets for rural thieves, with thefts up 9% to an estimated £3.2m in claim costs reported to NFU Mutual last year.

Livestock theft remained high in 2023 at an estimated cost of £2.7m across the UK and included a spate of alarming incidents in which farm animals were butchered in fields.

Farm animals worth an estimated £2.4m were severely injured or killed in dog attacks in 2023, up nearly 30% compared to the previous year.

In 2023, NFU Mutual became a major funder of the National Rural Crime Unit (NRCU) which was launched last April and is staffed by police officers with experience in detecting and preventing rural crime.

NFU Mutual shares claims data and insight to help identify areas at risk and finds theft patterns to assist recoveries.

Hannah Binns, Rural Affairs Specialist at NFU Mutual, said: “All the indications suggest rural crime is becoming more organised, sophisticated and determined in its nature, which is incredibly alarming for people who live and work in the countryside.

“While the overall cost of agricultural vehicle theft fell, thanks to co-ordinated efforts, it is concerning to see the value of GPS and ATV thefts continue to rise, with thieves turning to technology to scope out locations. 

“Intelligence highlights these criminals often target several farms in one night before moving locations, then return weeks later looking to steal any replacements."