Dorset Police are helping farmers and smallholders in the county to avoid theft by providing a free rural marking service.

They have various ways of marking your items anywhere without power. They can mark such items as cattle crushes and races, sheep handling systems, gates, feeders, troughs, batteries, fencers, trailers, petrol power tools and tractor and digger attachments.  If you would like to book an appointment with one of the team for marking or for a crime prevention visit, simply send an email to ruralcrimeteam@dorset.pnn.police.uk and one of the team will be in contact.

Police recover hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of stolen property every year, yet over 90 per cent is never returned to its rightful owner because they simply cannot identify who it belongs to.

You can of course mark items yourself using a simple postcode engraved or painted on in oil based paint.

There are so many benefits to marking your property.

Thieves know they risk arrest if caught in possession of marked property; marking provides evidence which can link an offender to the scene of a crime and it makes the item less desirable to a thief as it reduces the value and makes it much harder to sell on.

Dorset Police recommend that you keep an inventory of make, model and serial numbers and take photographs of unusual or bespoke items. Then, if items are stolen these can be used to locate them by using these on social media and in the media.

You can record details of your property on the property register http://www.immobilise.com