Rural Crime

Illegal metal detecting is the search and removal of antiquities from the ground using metal detectors without the permission of the landowners or on prohibited land such as Scheduled Monuments. It is a form of theft and can be prosecuted under the Theft Act.

The heart of the problem lies in the vicious circle of under-reporting of the crime, which in turn creates a false picture of the seriousness of the situation, making this a low priority crime for the police. It is also compounded by the difficulty in collecting evidence.

A code of practice for responsible metal detecting is available by clicking here. The Treasure Act Code of Practice is downloadable from the DCMS website at www.culture.gov.uk.

Nighthawking and The Law

Nighthawking can break the law on a number of points:

• Trespass: Nighthawking is often performed on private land where permission to survey and dig has been refused.
• Digging on Scheduled Sites: Digging on any sites which are Scheduled Ancient Monuments without Scheduled Monument Consent from the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport is illegal.
• Declaration of Treasure: The Treasure Act 1996 requires all finds that are legally defined as treasure to be declared to a local coroner or the police within 14 days. Nighthawkers rarely declare their finds due to the method of acquisition. Breach of this law can result in a £5,000 fine, a term of imprisonment up to three months or both.
• Theft: In Britain, ownership of finds on private lands, unless declared treasure, rests with the land owners. As many nighthawkers take finds to sell on to private dealers, this counts as theft under British Law.

Impact on metal detecting in the United Kingdom

Nighthawkers are considered to be separate from law-abiding metal detectorists, as they do not follow the codes of practice laid out by such hobbyist groups as the Federation of Independent Detectorists. However, it has been claimed that nighthawkers use such groups as a method of obtaining information about archaeological sites.

Despite the difference between the two groups, nighthawking has had a detrimental effect on the reputation of legitimate metal detectors.