The cost of a careless moment

Do you realise how much a careless moment at Christmas or in the January Sales could cost you?

Every year insurers receive thousands of motor theft claims and during the run up to Christmas many of these involve vehicle break-ins as people leave expensive items and shopping on show on rear parcel shelves, on seats and in foot wells.

Home Office crime figures show that 658,740 vehicles were broken in to in 2002/3 accounting for more than two-thirds of total reported car crime.

However, the British Crime Survey estimates that the true scale of ‘theft from’ offences is much higher than the recorded rate at around 2 million offences per year – three times the recorded rate. The result is that car crime now accounts for more than 20 per cent of all offences and almost half of these thefts occur in just one place - car parks.

Commenting on the figures, Ian Firth, operational underwriting manager from motor insurer Cornhill Direct said theft from cars could be prevented by not leaving goods or shopping on show.

He said: “A car is like a shop window to a thief looking for an easy target. If a thief cannot spot valuable items within easy reach he is unlikely to break in.”

Target items include mobile phones, cds, computer games, clothing and children’s toys although car stereos, documents and tools continue to be popular with opportunist thieves.

Estimates suggest that the average cost of a vehicle break-in can be as high as ?700 once the replacement cost of the items stolen and the costs of repairing damage to windows or locks are taken into account. What this figure does not include is the insurance excess or extra premium if one or more years no claims bonus is lost when making a claim

“The true cost can be up to ?1,000, “ says Ian. “But you can take steps to combat car crime. Don’t leave windows open and always make sure your car is locked when you leave it. Where possible take valuable items with you or store them out of sight in the glove box or the boot whenever the car is left unattended.

He adds: “When you are out Christmas shopping, be vigilant against thieves who are planning to avoid paying for their presents by stealing from cars. Leaving items on show is an open invitation to thieves.”