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Motorists worry over car crime!

admin — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 14:04:25 +0000

A survey of 2500 drivers recently commissioned by Admiral Insurance, has shown that three quarters worry about their vehicles being stolen or broken into. This is surprising considering that car crime is at a lower level now than it was ten years ago. Perhaps this heightened anxiety is due in part to the state of the country and economy, and their uncertain futures going forward.

Motorists expand a great deal of money on buying and running cars, so not understandable concerns. We can all do simple things to lessen the risk of car crime. Seems straightforward, but many cars may be stolen, if not locked or if the keys are left in the ignition, so remember to securely close windows and lock the vehicles. If you don’t leave valuables in the car, they won’t get stolen, so take all your electrical equipment with you.

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Cats targeted by thieves!

admin — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 21:44:12 +0000

Thousands of motorists have been hit by a spate of thefts of expensive catalytic converters from cars and vans, a survey by Halfords has discovered. A check on police crime figures reveals thieves are taking advantage of the soaring price of scrap metal to target vehicles in greater numbers than ever. In the first five months of this year, forces report 2,300 converters were stolen compared with 1,100 in the whole of the UK in 2009. The figures suggest the number of vehicles targeted is up four fold in the past two years. Catalytic converters, which lessen the amount of toxic exhaust gases released into the atmosphere, contain valuable platinum, palladium and rhodium and can net thieves between £50 and £100 in scrap value. But the crime leaves motorists facing bills topping £1000 for replacements. Converters have been fitted to the exhausts of the majority of petrol cars manufactured since 1992. The bandits hack off the device, often with a battery driven saw. More

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Car theft warning to drivers this winter!

admin — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 17:30:28 +0000

Motorists have been advised to be extra vigilant when the clocks go back as extra hours of darkness during the winter months will give car thieves more opportunities to steal. Figures released by Tracker show that 20% more stolen vehicles are recovered during winter. Stuart Chapman, the firm’s police relationships manager, said: “Our figures confirm that the winter’s extra hours of darkness allow more time for thieves to break into vehicles unseen, with November, January and February being the worst months. “In 2010, 84% of all the stolen cars recovered by Tracker were taken using the owner’s keys and this danger increases during the winter. More

Clocked used cars on the increase!

admin — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 20:30:41 +0000

This month marks the end of British Summer Time and, as we turn the clocks back, vehicle information expert, HPI, reminds used car buyers to watch out for unscrupulous sellers turning the clocks back on their mileage readings. Known as ‘clocking’, it not only adds false value to a vehicle, but it could add to the longer term running costs of the vehicle as it might have more wear and tear than the buyer realises. With more than 600,000 clocked vehicles estimated to be on the UK’s roads*, it signifies a huge threat to used car buyers. “Car ‘clocking’ involves altering a vehicle’s mileage and is often done by dishonest used car sellers wanting to hike up a car’s value,” says Nicola Johnson, Consumer Services Manager of HPI. “Winding back just 1,000 miles on a car can add an estimated £100-£400 to its value, so a seller would only need to take 2,000 miles off a £2,000 car to almost double its value – offering a profit many unscrupulous sellers can’t resist. 6 out of every 100 vehicles checked by HPI show a mileage discrepancy, showing that clocking is a more common occurrence than consumers might like to believe. Recent years have seen dodgy sellers come up with new methods of clocking, so it’s harder than ever to identify a tampered car by simply looking at it.” In the past, older vehicles had a simple mechanical odometer, which criminals could easily remove and literally turn back the miles with a screwdriver. This process would generally leave tell-tale signs, such as a small amount of damage or poorly aligned screws that could indicate that a car’s mileage had been tampered with. Modern vehicles are fitted with digital odometers, which can be quickly and simply altered with the use of diagnostic mileage correction software, readily available on the internet and which leaves no trace of interference. More

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Buyers warned about buying cars online!

admin — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 22:35:22 +0000

Online buying has become increasingly popular in recent years, which means more used car buyers than ever are likely to be scouring the internet for their dream car. However, used vehicle information expert HPI is warning used car buyers to proceed with caution, as they can be vulnerable to criminal scams when purchasing a vehicle online. In a recent survey conducted by HPI, a worryingly large number of those questioned (42%) did not think that buying online made them more vulnerable to these risks than when buying face to face. Nicola Johnson, Consumer Services Manager for HPI, urges them to think again: “The Internet can offer a wealth of deals and choice; however its relative anonymity can offer rich pickings for criminals looking to turn a quick profit. Buyers need to remain aware of the dangers and be cautious when purchasing online. “There are several scams that buyers could find themselves at risk from. One such scam is the ‘virtual car seller’, a sophisticated international scam conning online buyers out of millions of pounds. It starts with an advert in a motor magazine or website, with an English seller who has a top-of-the-range car for sale at a knock-down price. More

4 out of 5 ignore car alarms going off!

admin — Sun, 01 May 2011 22:34:38 +0000

We have become so used to the sound of car alarms going off that four out of five people fail to acknowledge the noise, a new study has found. Only 17 per cent of people walking past a car with its alarm going off reacted to the siren, with not a single person taking any action. Of the people who did acknowledge the alert, their only response was to briefly glance at the car as they walked past. Dr Ian Walker, a lecturer in traffic and transport psychology at the University of Bath, said: ‘We learn to ignore any sound that isn’t followed by a meaningful event. We hear car alarms but never see a car being stolen afterwards and so do not associate the sound with theft. ‘Alarms are only significant to the owner of the car. They may feel the fact they disturb everybody else is a fair price to pay given how highly most people value their cars.’ More

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Drivers risk car safety overnight!

admin — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 11:46:45 +0000

Mobile phones, handbags and portable sat navs are among the most common items left overnight in a car, a survey has revealed. It found they leave more than £3 billion worth of belongings in their car overnight and yet half of drivers do not lock their car while they are sleeping. Other expensive items left in vehicles overnight include MP3 players, golf clubs, cameras and sunglasses, according to the research by Your Cover, part of Allianz Insurance. It also revealed some of the more unusual items left in cars, including a spare set of false teeth, air beds and vacuum cleaners. The most popular items that women keep in the car are make-up and spare shoes while for men it is sports and car equipment. One in three women confess they consider their cares to be a ‘dumping ground’ for things they did not want to keep in the house, compared to one in four men. More

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UK’s largest ever fuel laundering plant smashed!

admin — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 22:12:30 +0000

The UK’s largest ever fuel laundering operation capable of producing over thirty million litres of illicit fuel a year and costing the taxpayer an estimated £20m in lost revenue has been dismantled by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) in Northern Ireland. The diesel laundering plant was uncovered in Co. Armagh yesterday morning when HMRC officers, accompanied by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), searched agricultural buildings near Crossmaglen. They seized six large fuel storage tanks, 37,000 litres of illicit fuel, 1,000 litres of acid, pumps and associated equipment. Almost 21,000 litres of toxic waste, stored in barrels and in an underground slurry pit, were also removed from the site. John Whiting, Assistant Director, Criminal Investigation, HMRC said: “This is fuel fraud on an industrial scale. The sheer size of this illegal operation is staggering and far exceeds anything we have ever come across before. This activity would have generated massive revenue loss as well as tonnes of toxic waste – it’s economic and environmental impact on Northern Ireland would have been considerable. “The location of this illegal operation would suggest that the fuel was destined for both sides of the border, resulting in losses to both the UK and Republic of Ireland exchequers. This operation shows the success of multi agency co-operation in tackling fuel fraud and why we will continue to work with our partners, as part of the Organised Crime Task Force, in the fight against organised crime.” A man arrested in connection with the find has been released on bail pending further enquiries. Investigations are continuing. More

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Decoy Police cars deter fuel thefts from filling stations!

admin — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 23:52:57 +0000

Petrol stations across Britain are getting 24-hour ‘police protection’ following an increase in fuel thefts as prices hit record levels. Redundant police cars are now being parked on forecourts to deter thieves by giving the impression that officers are nearby. Police say the decoy vehicles, which are parked regularly at different locations, have helped to reduce the number of customers driving away without paying for their petrol ‘Some petrol stations seem to have particularly high numbers of drive-offs, so we decided to trial this idea in our area,’ said Inspector Neil Ireland, of Suffolk police. ‘We are called into investigate when people drive away without paying for petrol and it can take a lot of time and cost a lot of money. ‘The decoy cars are working well and we have certainly seen a reduction in the number of reports.’ More

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Warning over used-car finance fraud!

admin — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 11:20:47 +0000

Used-car buyers are being urged to conduct history checks of prospective purchases to ensure that the vehicle is not subject to outstanding finance. The advice from vehicle data check firm HPI follows a report by BBC 5 Live Investigates, which found that some car owners raising finance with logbook loans secured on their vehicles are selling the cars before paying back the borrowed money. The report said that unwitting used-car buyers are therefore being left with debts owed by the previous owner of their vehicle. HPI warned that this represents a huge risk to the car-buying public, who could lose large sums of money and the on-finance vehicle to repossession. Nicola Johnson, consumer services manager for HPI, said: “We are increasingly aware of this type of activity, and would advise buyers to always conduct an HPI Check to discover if a vehicle is still on finance. More

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Fuel thefts worry motorists!

admin — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 21:50:32 +0000

Worried motorists are stepping up car security in the wake of reports of a growing wave of fuel thefts. Halfords reveals sales of locking fuel caps up 54% in the past week. Police also warn of a rise in thefts of number plates that can be used in drive-offs from petrol stations. The disturbing trend come as unrest in the Middle East has sent the cost of oil soaring, with predictions the price of fuel will rise by 5p a litre by April and could hit £8 a gallon. Police across the country are reporting a surge in petrol thefts and forces have launched campaigns to target the petrol criminals and advise garage owners to step up security. In Derbyshire fuel thefts rose 23% in the final six months of 2010. In Fife, Scotland’s second largest region, police say there has been a marked rise in thefts from parked cars, with fuel pipes being cut. Metropolitan Police in Hillingdon, West London said this type of crime is up after reports of gangs hitting cars parked in residential streets. The Metropolitan Police estimated over £500,000 of fuel was stolen from filling stations in the London by thieves using vehicles fitted with false plates. More

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£109M in change left in vehicles!

admin — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 21:19:44 +0000

Motorists in Britain store a collective £109 million in loose change inside their cars and vans, according to new estimates. A survey by discount website MyVoucherCodes.co.uk found that more than three-quarters of drivers purposely keep cash in their vehicles. The study, which questioned more than 2,100 people, determined that the average amount stored in a vehicle is around £4.20. According to the website, there are 34.3 million vehicles registered across the country, which means a potential £109,485,600 worth of change is stashed inside them. More

Car theft victims stung for recovery charges!

admin — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 23:07:13 +0000

Thousands of victims of car crime are being forced to pay recovery and storage charges to police when they recover stolen vehicles. When Harry Wright informed police his car had been stolen, he was relieved to be told within hours that the vehicle had been located. But relief turned to anger when he was charged a £150 recovery fee – plus £20 for storage – before he could retrieve his car. Mr Wright’s fury deepened when he discovered a knife in the car, apparently used by the thieves but which had not been removed by police forensic officers. The pensioner is one of thousands of motorists who suffer car theft and then get hit by Government rules making police levy recovery and storage charges. The Sunday Telegraph has learned that in one force alone about 1,000 crime victims are paying an estimated £150,000-£195,000 a year. Although drivers can claim the money back on their insurance, many do not do so because they still have to pay the excess and do not want to lose their no claims bonus. Motoring groups last night called for a rule change. An RAC spokeswoman said: “The motorist is paying through the nose for everything now. This seems to add insult to injury. We appreciate there is a cost for vehicle recovery but the Government needs to see if there is a fairer system.” More

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Astras ‘most-seized uninsured cars’!

admin — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 23:56:22 +0000

As many as 500 uninsured vehicles are seized every day, with Vauxhall Astras the cars removed from the road most frequently, figures showed today. After Astras, the next most-seized vehicles are BMW 3 Series cars, according to figures based on roadside calls to the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) police helpline. The statistics come as a new online video warning of the consequences of driving without insurance is launched by the MIB, which compensates victims involved in accidents with drivers who have no insurance. Police use the Motor Insurance Database to detect cars being driven without insurance. The consequences for drivers taking to the road without insurance include vehicle seizure, a minimum of six licence penalty points, and a fixed fine of £200. Drivers who have their cars seized will also be liable for £150 in recovery fees and still have to prove that they have insurance before they can get their vehicles back. MIB chief executive Ashton West said: “Christmas is a time when household budgets are stretched to the limit and, for some, the renewal of insurance may be overlooked. “Modern technology means that motorists who have no insurance are more likely than ever to be caught. It is simply not worth the risk.” More & List

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60,000 British cars have been ‘clocked’!

admin — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 20:47:40 +0000

More than 600,000 cars on Britain’s roads have been “clocked” so they show lower mileages, the BBC has learned. When vans and motorbikes are taken into account, MOT data shows the official mileage of 716,291 vehicles is lower than a year earlier. The figures have prompted fears that large numbers of drivers are being misled about used cars’ true mileage. The Department of Business, Innovation and Skills insists existing laws are sufficient to deal with the problem. BBC Radio’s 5 live Investigates programme secretly recorded calls to 10 web-based mileage correction services, each operating from a mobile phone number. Six were willing to help wind back the clock on a car, even though they knew it was being done with the intention of deceiving a potential purchaser. The figures about reduced mileage were revealed as a result of Freedom of Information (FoI) request to the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (Vosa). They show that in the year to March 2010, the recorded mileage on MOT certificates for 669,127 cars had dropped compared with that recorded on the previous certificates issued 12 months earlier. There was a similar problem with 26,512 motorbikes and 19,224 delivery vans. Vosa says there could be valid reasons why a reading might go lower, including data-inputting errors, or technical faults with the odometer – which records a vehicle’s mileage. More

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Hit and run on parked cars costs motorists dear!

admin — Sun, 26 Sep 2010 20:20:20 +0000

A fifth of drivers who hit a parked car flee the scene if its owner isn’t there, research reveals today. The ‘prang-and-run’ bandits are breaking the law and forcing innocent car owners to pick up the £169million bill for the damage. Each victim will pay an average of £1,800 in repair costs – and those who make an insurance claim risk losing their no-claims bonus and paying a hefty ‘excess’ charge. Prangs involving parked cars account for an estimated 700,000 of the 3.5million crashes that happen every year, according to driver support company Accident Exchange. More than half a million of these happen when the victim is not with his or her car. And in around 94,000 of these cases, the driver who caused the damage flees and is never traced, costing innocent drivers at least £169million a year. But the total bill could be even greater, because many would rather pay for repairs themselves than make a claim on their insurance and face losing their no-claims bonus. Even those who aren’t involved in an accident are paying the price for the prang-and-run bandits, because the effect of uninsured and untraced drivers is adding about £40 a year to the average car insurance premium. More

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Boy racers steeling ambulance ‘laughing gas’ to boost performance!

admin — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 21:48:03 +0000

Boy racers are thought to have been stealing pain relief gas from ambulance stations to use as ‘rocket fuel’ that boosts the performance of their cars. The thrill seekers have been blamed for repeatedly breaking into storage areas to steal the cylinders of entonox gas which contains nitrous oxide and oxygen. The gas can be used as a fuel to improve the performance of cars and produce far higher speeds than normal petrol or diesel. Five cylinders of the gas were stolen in the latest incident from a storage area at the ambulance station in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. Cylinders have also been stolen at other stations in Newmarket, Haverhill and Stowmarket in Suffolk as well as Cambridgeshire. Another cylinder was taken in June last year from an empty ambulance after paramedics left it parked outside Ipswich Hospital. The use of nitrous oxide has been previously highlighted in car chase films such as Mad Max starring Mel Gibson and The Fast And The Furious starring Vin Diesel. East of England Ambulance Service spokeswoman Adrienne Watts said: ‘It is like rocket fuel and is sometimes used to boost engine performance. ‘This is the second time in a month that ambulance staff in Suffolk have arrived for work to find that cylinders of Entonox had been stolen from their stores. More

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‘Crash for cash’ scams adds £44 to each motor policy!

admin — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 21:35:09 +0000

“Crash for cash” scams where fraudsters stage accidents to claim on other drivers’ insurance are at an all-time high, the BBC has learned. The Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) estimates around 30,000 accidents were staged last year. The scams cost insurers about £350m in 2009 and added £44 to the premium of every driver in the country. Birmingham was the UK’s top fraud hot-spot and incidents rose in parts of London, the industry-funded body said. Until recently the claims were largely confined to north-west England, and the other four top spots for insurance fraud of this sort were filled by Liverpool, Blackburn, Manchester and Leeds. But the scam appears to be moving south, with parts of London in the top 10 for the first time. East London takes sixth position while north London is in ninth position. The fraudsters ensure an innocent motorist drives into the back of their vehicle by braking suddenly on a clear road or roundabout. Often they use the handbrake so there are no warning lights. More

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1 in 5 keep quiet over parking knocks!

admin — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 22:12:45 +0000

It seems the supposed British sense of fair play is far from a universal attribute – at least according to a new poll that reveals drivers’ attitudes to hitting a parked car. According to the elephant.co.uk survey of 3,000 people, one in five drivers wouldn’t leave their name and car insurance details after hitting a parked car and visibly damaging it – such as scratching the paintwork or leaving a dent. And it seems that drivers of hot hatches and superminis need to be wary – another one in five drivers would base their behaviour on the type of car they had pranged, with these two categories least likely to be found with a friendly note if another driver had nudged them. Coming in a close joint-second was a quartet of vehicular bêtes noires, comprising taxis, transit vans, 4x4s and executive cars. However, those polled said they were more likely to own up to bumping a ‘disability vehicle’, and felt far more compulsion to admit hitting a police car. Overall, 59% said that they would always leave their details if they caused obvious damage to a parked car, while a scrupulous 20% said they would leave their details even if no damage was visible to the other vehicle. Two-thirds said they wouldn’t bother if there was no visible damage. More

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Hit and run on parked cars costs motorists dear!

100,000 written off cars are returned to the roads!

admin — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 20:24:47 +0000

The number of crashed cars being put back on the road by car insurance customers over the past two years has increased by ten per cent, reports car insurance provider Swiftcover, whose cover can only be bought online. Last year, according to DVLA figures, more than 100,000 cars were written off in crashes then allowed back on the roads after passing checks. swiftcover.com has warned that these cars may not be covered fully by motor insurance policies and that some owners will not know this until they try to file a car insurance claim. Due to the damage they may have sustained during the crash in which they were written off, the cars tend to be worth much less and cost more to repair in the future. The result of this is that many car insurance providers will not offer full market value for the car and some motor insurance companies may even refuse to provide any policy at all. More

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‘Crash for cash’ hotspots revealed!

admin — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 20:06:05 +0000

Analysis by Direct Line has identified the UK’s top ten ‘crash for cash’ hotspots, as the insurer steps up its fight against fraudsters who cost every other motorist an average of £44 a year and delay payments for genuine car insurance claims. ‘Crash for cash’ fraudsters fake accidents by making unnecessary emergency stops at busy roundabouts or slip roads, forcing motorists to crash into them. They then make bogus claims to the innocent motorist’s insurer, often including fictitious injuries. Direct Line’s sophisticated monitoring of data and coordinated nationwide investigations means its anti-fraud team are aware of hundreds of sites that have been used by fraudsters, enabling them to catch the perpetrators and bring them to justice. The scams are estimated to cost up to £350 million a year increasing the car insurance premiums of honest drivers, as well as delaying payouts for claims that happened at known hotspots by up to three weeks. Further analysis has enabled Direct Line to map the entire country to highlight evidence of suspicious claims and determine the ten worst hotspots for the scams. By utilising this information alongside specially developed technology and methodology, Direct Line is able to catch fraudsters more easily and quickly. The top ten hotspots include roundabouts and slip roads throughout the UK. More

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Key to preventing car theft begins at home!

admin — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 20:59:45 +0000

Every day at least 53 householders in England and Wales find that their car has disappeared following burglary of their home to obtain the keys, AA Insurance reveals. Figures announced in a parliamentary answer given by the Rt. Hon Alan Johnson MP, Home Secretary last month, show that in 2008/09 over 19,400 cars were stolen in this way, more than 1,600 per month: a 19 per cent increase over similar figures announced last year. A further 2,700 car keys were stolen by robbery of individuals, a slight but welcome fall over the previous year. More

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Crash and dash drivers cause £3.5bn of damage to other motorists cars!

admin — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 21:51:28 +0000

A fifth (20 per cent) of motorists have been a victim of a ‘crash and dash’ accident over the past five years as a result of a careless driver not owning up to damaging their car after a prang, reveals a new report by car insurer Direct Line. The average crash and dash victim is left with a £539 bill to repair the damage after the culprit left the scene of the accident without leaving their details, totalling £3.5billion nationwide since 2005. An unfortunate one in ten (9 per cent) victims of unscrupulous motorists has been left with damage costing in excess of £1000 to repair. Supermarket and shopping centre car parks are the scene of the majority of crash and dash incidents (42 per cent), as shoppers try to squeeze their cars into too-tight spaces and battle it out to be first to the next free spot. One in five (19 per cent) careless crash and dash motorists damaged another car while it was parked on the street outside the owner’s home, suggesting they are likely to have damaged a neighbour’s car. More

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Thousands of parents guilty of ‘fronting’ children on their car insurance!

admin — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 22:01:49 +0000

Around 36,000 parents are breaking the law by naming sons and daughters as a ‘spouse’ or ‘partner’ on their car insurance policy, our own research has found. swiftcover.com contacted policyholders over concerns with their cover and found that one in four admitted to ‘fronting’ by not putting down their offspring as a ‘named driver’. We estimate that the number of parents taking this fraudulent action has almost doubled in the last two years, with as many as 36,000 mums and dads guilty of doing so. Robin Reames, our claims director, warned those who front that insurers are clamping down on such behaviour, which ultimately ends up costing those who abide by the law and purchase car insurance honestly. “Trying to buck the system by fronting is not only illegal, it actually ends up costing law-abiding motorists if they are involved in an accident with a fronted driver who is actually an underinsured driver,” he added. More

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Road safety charity calls for specific drug-driving offence!

admin — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 21:56:36 +0000

Road safety charity Brake has renewed its call for a specific charge of drug-driving in the wake of the “shockingly low” conviction rates revealed in new crime figures. It is demanding that the Government makes it an offence to drive with illegal drugs in the body, allowing the police and the justice system to effectively target the “scourge” of drug-driving – something it says may now be as significant as alcohol-related motoring offences. According to the statistics from the Ministry of Justice there were 1,644 convictions in England and Wales for drug-related motoring offences in 2008. This compares to 71,449 for drink-related offences – the vast majority of which relate to the specific charge of ‘driving with alcohol in the blood above the prescribed limit’, for which there is no drug-driving equivalent. Although drug-driving is illegal, there are no prescribed ‘limits’, meaning the prosecution must prove that a motorist was ‘unfit to drive’ through the use of drugs. Brake argues that this is more difficult than being able to refer to the “simple statistical fact” that a test would offer. It says that the Government must approve kits that would enable police to carry out roadside tests on motorists suspected of drug-driving. More

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Uk’s un-insured driver hotspots announced!

admin — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 23:05:56 +0000

If you’re worried about getting hit by an uninsured driver, you might want to avoid these places. Listed below are the ten areas with the highest proportion of uninsured driver convictions. With uninsured driver accidents becoming an increasingly big problem for both motorists and insurers, price comparison website Moneysupermarket.com analysed almost 3 million car insurance quotes over a year and identified the places with the highest convictions. It said that the Scottish town, Sanquhar, in Dumfriesshire tops the list, with male motorists between the age 22-25 the main culprits. Amazingly, almost 30% of searches for insurance there showed up a conviction. Hebden Bridge, in West Yorkshire, and Glasgow were placed second and third in the list. Once again males in their early twenties were the main offenders. In fact, in all of the top ten areas men were the main offenders, except Bedfordshire – the only area with a female profile in the top ten. A surprise addition was London’s posh W11 postcode, where offenders were also older than the norm. Steve Sweeney, head of car insurance at moneysupermarket.com said: ‘It seems men under 25 are not only the country’s ‘boy racers’ but also ‘law breakers’. With half of the top ten profiles for uninsured drivers being males under 25, they are more likely to flout the law by driving without car insurance. ‘Unfortunately, the high cost of car insurance, especially for younger drivers could be the overriding reason for this.’ See the table of results

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Hull is announced as the worst place in Britain for car theft!

admin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 23:36:54 +0000

The East Yorkshire city held its spot at the top of a motor theft index compiled by Endsleigh insurers for the second year running. Nottingham, Bradford, Manchester and Doncaster completed the five worst spots for motorists looking to avoid thieves. At the other end of the scale Swindon was named as the safest place, with the fewest reports of thefts of vehicles or their contents. The results came against a background of falling car crime, with Government figures revealing offences fell by around a fifth over the past year. They were collected by analysing motor claims over the last three years from tens of thousands of insurance policyholders across Britain. Stuart Wartalski, of Endsleigh, said the risk of theft is particularly high after Christmas when vehicles are targeted for satnavs, DVDs, laptops and cameras. He said motorists should always keep valuables out of sight, fit their vehicle with an alarm and immobiliser and park in well-lit places. More

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Stolen car log books causes massive vehicle fraud!

admin — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 23:23:05 +0000

Vehicles worth £13m have been stolen as a result of the loss of thousands of blank DVLA log books, a BBC investigation has found. The police say they could be dealing with the impact of the blunder for over a century. Criminal gangs use the stolen vehicle registration documents to sell cloned cars on the private market. The DVLA says it is a criminal activity outside of its control and it is working with the police to stop it. Car cloning is the vehicle equivalent of identity theft. Gangs copy the number plate and other identifying details of a legitimate car onto a similar, but stolen clone. They also copy the genuine vehicle’s log book – or V5 form – by using one of thousands of blank DVLA documents that went missing some time in 2006. “We’re recovering about ten a week and we think there’s easily over 120 to 130,000 stolen blank documents out there still,” DCI Mark Hooper from the Association of Chief Police Officers’ (Acpo) vehicle crime intelligence service, told BBC 5 live’s Donal MacIntyre programme. More

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UKs top 10 stolen vehicles announced!

admin — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 22:32:44 +0000

Your car may be more eye-catching to criminals than you think. According to the Association of Chief Police Officers Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (AVCIS), the Ford Transit van is the vehicle most targeted by thieves. Hot on its heels is the Ford Fiesta, closely followed by the Vauxhall Astra and Vauxhall Corsa, which represent some of the most popular vehicles on the road. “Due to the sheer number of these vehicles and the huge market for stolen parts, these cars are very popular with criminals,” said Detective Chief Inspector Mark Hooper, Head of AVCIS. “We are finding that vehicles registered in the late 1990s and early 2000s are among those most desired. The vehicles are stripped for parts, which are sold on the internet before the larger components are sold as scrap metal.” Regionally, you are even more likely to be a victim of car crime if you live in Chislehurst (south-east London), Wingate (Durham), Redbridge (east London) or Hatfield (Doncaster), which were named as the UK’s top four car crime hotspots. Across the UK, an astonishing 40% of UK drivers have been a victim of car crime, and with only a 51% chance of recovering a stolen vehicle, drivers need to know whether they are at high risk and how to protect their property. More

Drivers ‘complacent’ over car crime!

admin — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 23:08:41 +0000

A poll of 3,000 motorists by Admiral found that an increasing number of people were taking car theft less seriously than in previous years, with 73% admitting to leaving desirable items on display in their cars compared with only 71% last year. The changing nature of car crime has also been reflected in the figures, with 39% of motorists admitting that they hide their keys at night or when they leave the house without their car, to counter the threat posed by thieves who are going to greater lengths to steal car keys from homes. More

Warnings of the dangers of Sat-navs!

admin — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:42:51 +0000

DRIVERS are being warned to beware of the dangers associated with this year’s must-have Christmas motoring accessory as sat-nav systems top the Yuletide wish-list. Retailers say that record numbers of satellite navigation systems are currently being snapped as Christmas presents but whilst they can be a useful driving aid there are also inherent dangers. Drivers who leave the systems on display within their vehicles are tempting opportunist thieves and the consequences can be far more serious than merely a smashed window and stolen sat-nav. The sat-navs will almost always have been used to guide drivers back to their home, with the address stored in the system as a further opportunity for the thieves. In many cases by the driver returns to the vehicle to find the sat-nav system gone their home has been burgled too. The Institute of Advanced Motorists warns that such systems must be removed from view every time the vehicle is left unattended and – equally important – all traces of the fixings must also be removed otherwise thieves will know that the sat-nav is hidden within the vehicle. More

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Criminal gangs pocket £350m a year from fake crashes!

admin — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 22:27:53 +0000

Criminal gangs staging bogus crashes are cheating insurance companies out of more than £350 million every year, police said. Detectives fear so-called “crash for cash” cons are becoming more common and sophisticated as crooks exploit lucrative scams carrying little risk. The Metropolitan Police has set up a specialist unit, believed to be the first of its kind in the country, to tackle the problem. Investigators are targeting fraudsters who spark collisions with innocent motorists as the first step in ripping off insurers. They then cash in by billing companies up to £50,000 for bogus courtesy car hire, vehicle storage, personal injury claims and legal fees. Det Ch Ins Nick Chalmers, of the force’s traffic crime unit, said it is only a matter of time before someone is killed in a staged crash. He added a recent report by the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) suggested the cost of similar scams could be £350 million every year. More

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Number plate theft on the rise!

admin — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:20:22 +0000

Police have warned that more than 40 per cent of thefts from motor vehicles are number plates. Latest figures show over 40,000 car owners a year are falling victims to the growing menace, up 25 per cent in 12 months. Stolen number plates are used by criminals to avoid identification while committing serious crimes. And they’re also useful in escaping speeding and parking fines, tolls and congestion charges. Law abiding owners can find themselves facing court action for something they didn’t do and have the difficulty of proving their number plates have been stolen. More

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Top 10 places to have your car stolen!

admin — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 21:22:53 +0000

CHISLEHURST is the car crime capital of the UK. Judging by motorist insurance claims in the area, the town is a hot spot for vehicle theft. A total of 3.82 per cent of drivers in that region of the Bromley borough have been robbed of their means of transport in the last 12 months. The second-worst neighbourhood in terms of motor robbery was Wingate in Durham but the data from moneysupermarket.com saw districts such as Redbridge and Romford show up east London for appearing more than once in the top ten. More

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Extra advice on how to keep car thieves away!

admin — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 21:31:41 +0000

While crime rates in general have risen during the recession, car theft is on the decline, according to latest figures issued by the Home Office. The Home Office crime prevention department reports that vehicle crime (malicious damage and theft) in England and Wales has fallen by more than 66% since 1995, and the number of reported incidents dropped by 11% in 2007-08 over the previous year alone. More

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Top 10 places to have your car stolen!

Police taking valuables from unlocked cars!

admin — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 22:21:05 +0000

Police in Richmond upon Thames, south west London have been taking valuable items from unlocked cars to encourage motorists to take better care of their property. While forces across the country have been sending warning letters to the owners of cars when they see possessions unattended, this is believed to be the first time that goods have been “stolen” to drive the crime-prevention message home. When officers remove goods, they leave a note in the car telling the owner that they can retrieve their possessions from Twickenham police station. More

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250,000 17-20 Year olds have no car insurance!

admin — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 10:23:59 +0000

An estimated 250,000 people aged between 17 and 20 continue to drive despite not having any insurance cover in place, according to the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB). The group, which pays compensation to people involved in accidents with uninsured drivers, said people in this age group were four times more likely to be involved in claims, highlighting the significant proportion of young people without insurance cover who were causing accidents. It said part of the problem was that one in 10 young drivers claimed not to be aware that having motor insurance was a legal requirement. But the biggest issue is thought to be the high cost of insurance for young drivers, which puts off many people from taking it out. More

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One car stolen every five minutes!

admin — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 22:01:49 +0000

This week’s ITV UK Car Crime programme shockingly revealed that one car is stolen every five minutes, highlighting that more people are at risk of buying a stolen car than ever before. The leading vehicle information expert, HPI, stresses that all used car buyers need to take a few simple but effective steps to help beat the car criminals. “Last year, 14,000 vehicles were stolen in Greater Manchester alone, which illustrates just how serious the problem is,” explains Nicola Johnson, Consumer Services Manager. “The problem continues as car criminals continue to employ a variety of dirty tricks, such as car cloning, to fool innocent purchasers into buying a stolen car. Car cloning is the vehicle equivalent of identity fraud where the stolen vehicle is fraudulently disguised as a similar vehicle already on the road. “If you buy a cloned or stolen vehicle you stand to lose the car and the money you paid for it, as the vehicle will always be returned to its rightful owner. Consumers should recognise the risks and use every tool available to them to help combat the vehicle fraudsters. By conducting a vehicle history check and proceeding with caution, car buyers can uncover a fake and walk away unscathed.” More

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