By Time Rebecca Winters Keegan (06/23/2008)
Rehabbers - be on the lookout for Copper Thieves!
With copper at more than $4 per pound, thanks to demand in Asia, home owners should guard the metal like it was gold.
"You would never leave gold sitting out in the yard," says OneBeacon Insurance Group executive Charlie Sidoti, who estimates a 300 percent increase in claims of copper theft in the past 18 months.
Homes sitting empty are easy targets. Sidoti recommends installing fences, motion-detector lights and security cameras to discourage thieves from ripping out air conditioner coils, plumbing, rain gutters, sprinklers and bronze lawn ornaments.
Meanwhile, 35 states have pending or signed legislation requiring people selling metal to show identification to scrap dealers.
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