Crack down on metal thieves

New laws have come into effect to try to prevent thieves profiting from stolen scrap metal. It means dealers can no longer accept cash. It also means they have to vet customers rigorously.

Some in the West Midlands fear the new regulations will cost them business because it can be a laborious process. Others believe it makes the whole industry fit for modern business.

The director of One Stop Recycling in Birmingham says the new licensing scheme for scrap metal yards may be difficult for smaller companies to implement, as they may not have the resources to set up the licenses.

Yards now cannot pay metal dealers for their material by cash, so a new MetalCashCard system has been installed in many scrap yards. Amy Bird feels that MetalCashCard can help to ease the pain of the new legislation.

A metal dealer from Birmingham believes the new cash-card scheme, where dealers are paid directly onto a top-up debit card, is a great thing for his business.

He spoke to ITV News Central at One Stop Recycling in Birmingham, who are using the new system.

The system works whereby payment is put directly onto a card, which also shows the scrap yard that the seller is verified and legitimate. The seller can then use the card like a debit card, or withdraw cash at an ATM.

The scheme has come in after new laws mean dealers can no longer be paid in cash, and must be identified and checked. The laws have been put in place to crack down on metal thieves selling their stolen goods to metal yards for quick profit.

A scrap yard director believes metal theft has always been a problem, but now new laws have come into place, she believes more policing of yards and better education in metal companies has improved the situation.

Amy Bird spoke to ITV News Central on the final day that scrap yards can register with a new scheme to track metal sellers. The scheme is designed to crack down on metal theft, as the thieves can no longer simply sell metal for cash.

New laws have come into effect to crack down on metal thieves selling their stolen goods. It means scrap metal yards can no longer accept material without checking and verifying the identity of the sellers.

One Stop Recycling in Birmingham has worked with a team in Solihull to devise a metal cash card scheme to enable legitimate sellers to continue in business.

The technology means once registered they can be verified within three minutes. There are concerns that smaller dealers will struggle to cope with the new demands.

Today is the final day for scrap yards to sign up to a new register, which will allow police to crack down on metal theft.

A law came into force recently meaning scrap metal dealers must take the identification of, and verify, every person selling metal.

By registering for the scheme, police can audit the yards, and trace the people trying to sell stolen metal.