Abatement of Rewards

Abatement of Rewards - Discouraging wrong behaviour

As explained in the Treasure Act 1996 Code of Practice (CoP), paragraph 71: 'The paramount objective in the payment of ex gratia rewards for finds of treasure is to encourage the reporting of finds and to ensure that there are adequate incentives to finders [and landowners] while at the same time discouraging wrong behaviour'. The Treasure Valuation Committee, in its terms of reference, is tasked to 'provide advice to the Secretary of State in cases where there are grounds for either no reward to be paid to the finder, or for a reduced reward to be paid' (paragraph 65, CoP).

Paragraph 79 of the CoP lists a number of reasons why a reward might be abated, and it is worthwhile for interested parties to acquaint themselves with these. The CoP grants a wide range of discretion to the Secretary of State when deciding whether, and by how much, to abate a reward. The best way to ensure that a reward is not abated is to follow the principles outlined in the Code of Practice for Responsible Detecting, available for download on these pages, and to follow the advice of the Coroners, Finds Liaison Officers, and national museums.

Below is a table of cases considered by the Treasure Valuation Committee from 2007 onwards where abatements have been recommended.

TVC meeting date, amount abated and reason for abatement

Treasure Number	Description	Findspot	County	TVC Meeting Date	£ Abated	Reason
2003 T37	Iron Age and Roman coins (36) and pot	South Oxfordshire	Oxfordshire	07/08/2007	£1,552.50	Obsfucation of information at time of initial reporting; finder only became cooperative further into the process.
2004 T242	Bronze Age assemblage	Northampton	Northamptonshire	27/06/2007	£300.00	Finder not sought permission to detect on common land. Was member of club and tried to seek retrospective permission in evasive manner, but was otherwise cooperative.
2005 T261	Bronze Age base metal hoard	Ramsgate area	Kent	07/08/2007	£550.00	Finder was arrested by police in early hours of the morning with artefacts in boot of car. No evidence he actually intended to report the finds, nor had he sought permission.
2005 T418	Roman coin hoard	Doncaster	South Yorkshire	04/04/2008	£29.75	Finders not sought permission to detect
2006 T4	Roman coin hoard	Burwash	East Sussex	22/09/2011	£2,300.50	Seemed to go on land after permission had been retracted
2006 T298	Post-Medieval silver forger's hoard	Stockbridge	South Yorkshire	06/01/2009	£5.50	Finder not sought permission, but cooperated afterward
2006 T611	Roman coins	Sherfield on Loddon	Hampshire	04/04/2008	£12.50	Finder not sought permission to detect
2007 T39	Medieval silver seal matrix	Sealfield	North Yorkshire	27/06/2008	£95.00	One of the finders delayed in reporting find, so he was abated 10% of his 25% share
2007 T311	Anglo-Saxon coins	Harswell	ER of Yorkshire	01/10/2010	£250.00	Finder refused to disclose findspot
2008 T485	Bronze Age axe hoard	Uttlesford	Essex	13/01/2011	£750.00	Nighthawking; finders caught in layby by police
2009 T125	Medieval silver coins (16)	King's Langley	Hertfordshire	25/02/2011	£40.00	Finder not sought permission for detecting on Common land. Signs present but not clear.
2009 T450	Roman coin hoard	Shrewsbury	Shropshire	09/03/2012	£6,739.50	Detecting on Scheduled Monument (which is a criminal offence), but cooperated afterward
2009 T656	Medieval silver ring	Bishop Wilton	ER of Yorkshire	20/07/2012	£25.00	Detecting without permission of landowner
2010 T107	Medieval silver piedfort	Uncertain	Shropshire	28/10/2011	£640.00	Failure to report, but she had at least shown it to a museum for recording. Only handed in after police involved.
2012 T196	Roman silver coins	Wetherby	North Yorkshire	29/01/2014	£100.00	4 groups of coins; one group left them anonymously with group leader only after prompting and were abated
2013 T188	Viking gold pendant	Spilsby	Lincolnshire	13/03/2014	£112.50	Overcleaning of object
2012 T674	Roman gold coins (159)	Sandridge	Hertfordshire	17/12/2014	£4,942.50	Finder detected without permission on so-called 'no man's land'. Reported finds and behaved properly otherwise.
NI 14.03	Roman gold rings & s. buckle	Murlough	County Down	12/02/2015	£153.00	Finder detected on land where detecting is forbidden, but no clear boundaries or signs present. Reported finds.
2015 T94	BA gold penannular ring	Cranleigh	Surrey	25/04/2018	£330.00	Failed to report find when prompted; police seized and finder convicted of theft.
2015 T499	EM silver coin hoard	Herefordshire	Herefordshire	03/02/2022	£388,125.00	Both finders convicted for conspiracy to steal, after failing to report most of the coins discovered.
2016 T294	Medieval gold finger-ring	Bobbington	Staffordshire	03/05/2017	£100.00	Restoration of object prior to reporting to FLO
2016 T820	Post-Medieval silver coins (1,201)	Ewerby	Lincolnshire	14/11/2018	£1,637.98 + 50% of disclaimed coins	Finder withheld 20 coins to sell privately; subsequently recovered by police action.
2018 T252	Early Medieval gold setting	Wingerworth	Derbyshire	02/11/2020	£180.00	Finder initially refused to hand over item and report all details until Coroner, police involved. Then claimed it was lost. Later handed in. Threatened not to report Treasure again
2018 T340	Iron Age coin hoard (15)	Teme Valley	Shropshire	11/12/2019	£1,600.00	Finders left coins with landowner but never disclosed identity or reported the coins themselves to FLO/Coroner. Suspected that finders retained some coins themselves.
2020 T362	Post-Med gold posy ring	Newchurch	Isle of Wight	24/03/2022	£375.00	Finder admitted straightening the ring after discovery.