Jailing halts insurance claim spree
A south London council has not had to claim on its insurance since a man was jailed for stealing £150,000 of lead from school roofs, the Sutton Guardian reports.
That includes £36,000 for St Philomena's Catholic School in Carshalton after lead was stolen by Tom Berge, 28, from Wallington, who has been been jailed for 12 months.
Says council spokesman John Drage: "There was a spate of lead thefts across the borough in 2007 and 2008, and local schools were affected.
"As a result of the insurance claims, all schools have now repaired their buildings with non-lead materials to deter thieves."
The council received a total of £1.6m in insurance claims across the borough in the last financial year.