You may remember we recently highlighted a sharp increase in garden thefts – up 23% since 2017. In a recent incident £2,500 worth of Koi and Mirror Carp were Stolen from a Pond in Huntley, Gloucester. Fish thefts are becoming increasingly common. As you’re no doubt aware, the value of fish, especially prize Koi can be quite substantial. And that’s before you even consider the value of other items in your garden.

The lengths thieves will go to in getting at your koi truly know no bounds! In one amazing case from back in 2012 detailed in The Dunmow Broadcast, it’s thought that electric shock, drugs or even explosives were used to subdue the pond inhabitants before stealing £10,000 worth of koi!

The average value of garden items among UK householder’s (not including ponds and fish) is around £1500. It’s worth bearing in mind though that for many of us that value will have increased sharply in recent times due to recent national and local lockdowns.

The UK gardening and pond trade has experienced a boost in recent months, with people following government guidelines and staying home – perhaps spending money that would have been spent on holidays abroad, on their ponds and gardens instead.

Also as people spend more time in their gardens (especially through the recent hotter summer months), we’ve tended to be more prone to leaving valuable items outside accidentally that might not have happened otherwise. This has meant that everything from mobile phones to expensive stereo systems, Alexa and other smart speaker devices - and even TV’s and projector units, have been known to have been stolen from UK gardens.

It's important to remember to be vigilant. We tend to think of our gardens as safe havens – like an extension of our house, that nobody would dream of entering without our permission. That attitude has led to some of the higher value item thefts mentioned above. Remember to look at your home insurance and make sure it’s updated to cover garden item thefts, if it doesn’t already.

Meanwhile in the Gloucester incident, police are appealing for information in the theft of the 40 much missed fish.