The manager of a Birmingham insurance brokers is considering packing up and moving the company out of the city after it was targeted by lead thieves twice in six weeks.

With £5,000 worth of damage caused each time, managers at Adler Insurance Brokers Ltd, Acocks Green, say the cost of crime is too high and could drive them from the area.

Manager Darren Hunt said: “We might be moving out of the area. We can’t be far away but definitely outside of Birmingham. It’s a shame.”

First hit over the Christmas break, the Yardley Road firm only replaced the first load of stolen metal on February 9.

But staff arrived for work on Monday to find the lead thieves had struck again taking exactly the same roofing that had been stolen over Christmas.

Mr Hunt, aged 41, who has been with the firm for 22 years, said: “We were looking to have it painted but before we had they chance to do it they’ve taken it.

“It’s got to be this area. We’re only down the road from the police station but I don’t think it’s manned at night. There are gates so they (the thieves) have to get over the fence.

"We had Grade Six lead which is top stuff and quite heavy so it must have been a gang to take the amount they’ve taken.”

Mr Hunt said the firm would now look to avoid replacing the lead but, if ordered to by their landlord, would pack their bags and leave.

“We’ll look at Solihull or Shirley. A lot of our staff travel from quite far so they seem okay with it.”

Andy Adler, managing director of the brokers, said: “What these criminals are doing is forcing business out of the area.”

Lead thefts have been on the rise across the city due to the high scrap cost of the metal.

Last week thieves struck at Yardley’s ancient St Edburgha’s Church, where crooks stripped the 700-year-old church’s roof of lead in two separate overnight raids.

Church leaders are now worried a shortage of funds will delay essential roof repairs.

Also last week a church, school and charity shop were all targeted by lead thieves in Solihull.

In total five properties, including an Alzheimers Society shop, were stripped of the metal within a week.

A police spokeswoman said that they were currently running Operation Steel to combat metal theft across the West Midlands, which is on the increase due to the rising prices paid for scrap metal.

“While we are doing all we can to clamp down on this kind of theft, the public can help too by reporting suspicious activity such as people on roofs at night and people loading metal into the back of trucks and vans at unusual times in unusual places.”