Boatshield Update

Wildfuzz · July 25, 2017

We hope you are all having a safe, enjoyable and crime free summer so far. We would like to encourage you to call and report any crime (no matter how small), suspicious activity or anti-social behaviour to us. Unless you report it to us we won’t know about it, and will not be able to do anything about it. Any Broads bylaw offences such as speeding on the broads, care and caution or hire boats navigating at night to Broads Authority on 01603 756056.

We have only had a small amount of crime on the rivers over the last few months, and some of the details of the types of crimes are listed below.

*Theft from a boat in the Whittlingham area of Norwich where 4 youth have entered a boat and stolen property from within. These 4 people were arrested at the time and the crime is currently being investigated by Norfolk Police.

*Five thefts of outboard engines, two in Ipswich, one in Felixstowe, one in Buckenham and one in Wroxham.

*Theft of a tender from a boat moored at Norwich Yacht station which was later seen by Broads Authority. The male was stopped by Broads Authority rangers and then arrested by police, and he has been charged with theft.

*Theft of a Perkin instrument panel form a day cruiser moored at Norfolk boat sales in Wroxham and an attempt theft of fuel from Wroxham Launch hire.

*Burglary at a riverside property at Gillingham near Beccles. The stolen property was recovered by the owner near to the river’s edge so it is believed the offenders were going to collect the items by boat. Any information on this crime to 101 crime reference 36/49333/17.

All these seem to be isolated incidents and don’t appear to be linked.

Please take security of your boat and property seriously and remove valuable items from view, use an outboard engine cover and report incidents to us.

If you have any information regarding any incidents or crime please contact PC 1025 Barrell or PC 1048 Bassham at Norfolk Police on 101.

Outboard Security

Outboards are one of the prime targets for thieves and it is extremely important to have your outboard motor properly secured to the transom of your boat. Most insurance policies dictate that outboards must be securely attached to the craft using an outboard motor lock or another anti-theft device.

Smaller outboard motors, up to 20hp, are often secured using cable locks but these are not very effective. It is recommend that smaller outboards are protected using a good quality clamp lock over the outboard handles that prevent anyone from releasing the outboard clamps without removing the outboard lock.

Larger outboard engines should be secured with security bolts fixed through the transom and the nut securing the outboard should be either tack welded or fixed using a good quality stainless steel outboard motor bolt lock. A combination of a clamp lock and an outboard motor bolt lock will provide additional security. There are many types of these readily available and chandlers or BoatShield Information Points will be able to advise you according to the type and size of your engine.

An additional deterrent is to remove the hood of your outboard motor when you are not using your boat and replace it with a PVC security cover. This devalues the outboard for the thief making it more difficult to sell on. Please email PCSO Martin Chapman @ chapmanmp@norfolk.pnn.police.uk for further details and where to purchase one from.

Please refer to the Boatshield Booklet for more security advice and if you haven’t got one please let us know and we can send you one.

Alternatively you can just google Boatshield Scheme which should get you to the right place.

Please remember to tell other Boat owners about Boatshield.