Tool theft in the UK: the numbers every tradesperson should know

Tool theft is one of those crimes that barely makes the news but quietly costs tradespeople a fortune. This page pulls together the most recent figures from police data, insurers and industry surveys, so you can see the scale of the problem and what it means for you. We’ve linked every source at the bottom and we’ll keep it updated as new data comes out.

How many tools are stolen in the UK?

Police forces recorded 26,724 tool thefts in 2025, roughly one every 20 minutes, according to FOI data from 30 forces analysed by Direct Line Business.¹ The same research found tradespeople lost an average of around £1,300 of tools per theft.

Earlier years tell a similar story, though they’re based on different groups of forces:

Year	Thefts reported to police	Taken from vehicles
2023	44,514 (one every 12 minutes)	55%
2024	25,525 (one every 21 minutes)	49%
2025	26,724 (one every 20 minutes)	About 42%

Source: Direct Line Business FOI analyses, 2024 to 2026.¹ In Scotland alone, NFU Mutual found 1,765 tool thefts reported between December 2024 and December 2025, about five a day.²

And these are only the thefts that get reported. In Direct Line’s 2026 survey, 23% of victims said they didn’t report the theft at all.¹

How many tradespeople are affected?

Most of them. Three recent surveys put the share of tradespeople who’ve had tools stolen at between two-thirds and three-quarters:

• 74% have been a victim at some point in their career, and 32% more than once (Direct Line Business, 2026).¹
• 72% have experienced tool theft, and 27% more than once (Tempcover, December 2025).³
• 66% have been victims (Markel Direct, June 2025).⁴

Unsurprisingly, it weighs on people. In a survey by On The Tools, 86% of tradespeople said they worry about tool theft, and 58% worry about it every day.⁵ Simply Business found 77% of victims said the theft had affected their mental health.⁶

Where are tools stolen from?

Vans, mostly. Between about 42% and 55% of reported tool thefts each year are from vehicles.¹ Simply Business says the most common cause of its tool theft claims in 2025 was “property damage”, which includes the “peel and steal” method of bending back a van door to get at the load area.⁷

Thieves also take the whole van. DVLA data obtained by Direct Line showed 11,273 vans were stolen in 2024, about 31 a day, and only 39% were recovered.⁸ Tempcover’s FOI for 2025 found the number fell to 10,013, still about one every 52 minutes, with Ford vans making up more than half.⁹

When are tools stolen?

Thefts rise as the nights draw in. Direct Line’s data shows tool thefts in October 2024 were 13% higher than in September, and van tool thefts peaked at 2,511 in October 2023, compared with 1,632 in April.¹⁰ Darker evenings give thieves more cover, so autumn is the time to check your van security.

What does tool theft cost?

Far more than the tools themselves.

• Simply Business estimates tool theft cost tradespeople £98.9 million in 2025, and says the average claim has risen 24% since 2020.⁶
• Tempcover found the average cost of replacing stolen tools was £3,092, and 18% of tradespeople had no tool insurance.³
• In Markel Direct’s research, 32% of victims lost one or two days’ work.⁴ Direct Line’s 2024 research put average lost earnings from the last theft at £1,836.¹¹
• Wickes found 22% of tradespeople had lost more than £500 to a theft, and 20% had faced financial hardship as a result.¹²

How many stolen tools are recovered?

Very few. In Simply Business’s 2026 survey, 94% of victims never got their tools back.⁶ An earlier Direct Line FOI found only 3% of tools reported stolen were returned to their owners.¹³ And in London, Met data from 2021 to 2022 showed just 0.3% of tool theft cases led to a charge.¹⁴

Part of the problem is proof. When the Met seized around 400 suspected stolen tools at a Hounslow car boot sale in December 2025, roughly £80,000 worth, only about £6,000 could be returned, because owners couldn’t show the tools were theirs.¹⁵ NFU Mutual found only 59% of tradespeople record their serial numbers and 41% keep photos of their tools.¹⁶

Where do stolen tools end up?

Close to home, and often quickly. In Direct Line’s 2025 research, 47% of tradespeople said they’d been approached by, or seen, people selling tools they suspected were stolen, and 67% supported a ban on selling second-hand tools without proof of ownership.¹⁷ Car boot sales and online marketplaces come up again and again in police cases.

What is the law doing about it?

• The Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023 lets the government require immobilisers and forensic marking on certain new equipment, starting with quad bikes and GPS units, but it doesn’t cover hand or power tools.¹⁸
• The Crime and Policing Act 2026 created new offences for possessing or supplying devices used to steal vehicles or items from them, such as signal jammers and key emulators.¹⁹
• A petition to ban the sale of used power tools at car boot sales reached 46,397 signatures; the government said it had no plans to do so.²⁰ MPs debated the theft of tools of trade in Westminster Hall in June 2025.²¹

What the numbers mean for you

The figures point to three things you can control:

1. Keep tools out of the van overnight wherever you can, and harden the van for the times you can’t. See our guide to stopping tools being stolen from your van.
2. Record and mark everything, so a recovered tool can come back to you. Here’s how to mark and register your tools.
3. Have a plan for the day it happens. Bookmark our 24-hour checklist for when tools are stolen from your van.

Regimate lets you register up to 50 tools free, with photos, receipts and serial numbers that nobody else can register after you. Running a team? Regimate Enterprise gives you a shared register for every van, site and tool.

Frequently asked questions