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Could Hoarding Become a Crime Again after Brexit?

March 21, 2019 By Richard Farrell

Current uncertainties in Britain are causing otherwise stingy shoppers to ‘do Brexits’ to the delight of supermarkets. The New Statesman half wondered what would happen if supplies started running low. Would the government start to ration food again, as they did 77 years ago when the country was in survival mode?

When Hoarding Was Last a Crime in Britain

One Elsie Carter was nicked for being in possession of too much food in 1942, and fined £2,000 for her troubles. The Bank of England figures that converts to £92,566 using shopping basket theory.

Her grisly crime was hoarding “34kg of preserves, 196 tins of fish, 82 tins of milk, 81 tins of meat, and 98 tins of fruit under her stairs” which she claimed had “slipped her memory”.

Wartime rationing continued in Britain until July 1954 when meat and bacon became freely available to those with money again. Author Richmal Crompton immortalised those days in her series of ‘Just William’ books. As the unruly boy steals sweets from shops he mutters “crim’nal, this hoarding”.

How Serious Could this Hoarding Become?

The New Statesman’s grab sample includes an ‘apparently rational’ individual who filled the freezer ‘just in case’, and another one who ‘bought all the wine’ whatever that may mean. Even a government emergency specialist purchased ‘two weeks of sensible supplies’ including tinned pulses, fruit and veg, bags of rice and so on’.

We wonder what happens after that. A full fridge empties in a week. Perhaps it makes sense to hoard because we would be way down on Oxfam’s list of deserving causes presumably, especially on behalf of dogs and cats that demand tasty treats.

Are the British a Nation of Closet Hoarders Then?

Go into a spare bedroom in any UK home and you’ll likely to find the cupboards piled high with clutter. So high in fact you’ll be hard pressed to fathom the lowest layers. Ask the alpha person in the house and you may get a high pitched laugh with a throwaway ‘I’ll have to sort this out someday when I have the time”.

The website Emergency Food Storage UK is certainly on the bandwagon. Their offerings include;

# An 18 month ‘Full Range’ Emergency Food Pack £2,450

# A 12 month ‘Full Range’ Emergency Food Pack £1,650

If this sounds a bit steep how about their ‘Deluxe Brexit Box at £595? This has a shelf life of ‘up to 25 years’. If Brexit turns out soft you could always leave it to your favourite grandchild just in case.

At those prices people are unlikely to throw the remainder away after Brexit doesn’t, or happens nicely. They will soon become bored with the identical cans and return to their Tesco’s in hordes. What will archaeologists say when they discover these hoards in a millennium’s time.

Were they gifts to the gods, or sustenance after they died while they travelled to their heaven? Or will they say “That’s the British, unable to throw anything away” because global warming was threatening their food chain.

Filed Under: Compulsive Hoarding Tagged With: british closet hoarders, deluxe brexit box, emergency food storage uk, hoarder house clearance, hoarding a crime

Our House Clearance Services

We provide a full house clearance and property management solution:

  • We clear hoarded houses, regardless how big or how cluttered
  • We clear all types and sizes of property, irrespective of location, or access is restricted or where parking is difficult or not available.
  • We can help avoid water damage by draining the central heating system.
  • We can secure the property and change the locks.
  • We can reinstate the gardens and maintain them whilst the property is empty.
  • We can provide 24 hour security to eliminate the risk of squatting or unlawful occupation.

As well normal house clearances we specialise in clutter clearance and we can clear a hoarded house which may contain years of accumulated possessions, or which have abnormal amounts of general household items, sometimes as a result of compulsive hoarding syndrome.

Equally we can help to clear a property where the occupants were previously unwell and unable to care for themselves or their property which sometimes results in insanitary, dangerous or just plain unpleasant conditions.

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Mar 8, 2021
by Jason Sims on Avery Associates
South Coast House Clearance & Document Retrieval

"I would like to thank Jeffrey and everyone at Avery Associates for assisting my dad and me. Following a death in the family, my father had to make last... Read More

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Probate Valuation & House Clearance

A one stop shop from beginning to end for myself as a first time executor.From our first call I was confident Jeff not only understood the issues with... Read More

Thank you Ian and it was a pleasure to assist you, we know how hard this process can be trying to find different service providers can be a nightmare so we feel very happy to ease the burden by providing all the services you require from one port of call.RegardsJeffrey Avery

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by Sarah Lennie on Avery Associates
House Clearance After Probate

I just wanted to give my feedback I have recently moved my mother from her house and had the difficult task of clearing what was left in her... Read More

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