Metal Detecting: A Landowners’ Guide to “Finds Agreements” – Part 2

by Nigel Swift

We previously suggested the National Council for Metal Detecting’s Search Agreement leaves landowners wide open to being ripped off. We didn’t mention the other main Agreement, produced by the Federation of Independent Detectorists. Its actually worse. Look at these 5 clauses:

If you’re a landowner you may wonder how come EH, the CBA et al advise you to sign a finds agreement when it’s clearly throwing you to the wolves. One of your number, Silas Brown, has asked them about it. Hopefully they’ll reply to him soon and issue a pukka official Finds Agreement that looks after your interest in your property and Britain’s in it’s heritage knowledge. Personally I’d never sign anything that didn’t do all that. Just tell the bloke at the gate you want him to sign a document that says you must be given all your property and make all the decisions about it. It’s not rocket science, and any piece of paper that says anything else whatsoever is NOT in your interest. You can tell EH and CBA that too if you write to them.

_____________________________________________________________

More Heritage Action views on metal detecting and artefact collecting

_____________________________________________________________