Britain’s motorists are living in fear of having their car stolen or broken into according to a new poll, even though car crime numbers have fallen over the years.

Car insurance specialist Admiral commissioned YouGov to survey 2,500 drivers as part of the annual Admiral Survey of British Motorists, and found almost three quarters (74%) worry about their car being stolen or broken into.

Drivers in the East Midlands, and Yorkshire are most concerned with 80% in those regions worrying about their car being stolen or broken into, whilst motorists in Scotland have the most relaxed stance with 63% worrying about it.

However, it appears this anxiety about car crime is unfounded as Admiral's own claims statistics show that the number of cars being stolen or broken into has dropped dramatically over the past decade. In fact, in 2011 0.16% of motorists insured by them had their car stolen compared to 0.54% in 2001. Car break ins show a similar pattern, as ten years ago 0.61% of motorists insured had their car broken into compared to 0.16% in 2011.

Dave Halliday, Admiral managing director, said: "Our statistics show that car crime has been falling for several years now, so maybe worrying about it is undue. This anxiety could be linked to a general sense of unease about the state of the country and the economy in particular; our cars are after all, one of the most valuable things we own."

Dave continued: "Modern cars have excellent security features with manufacturers making them more and more difficult to steal, which must have some impact on the number stolen or broken into. However, motorists should always make sure their car isn't an easy target for thieves by parking it in a well-lit area, not leaving items on show, and making sure their keys are kept in a safe and secure place should someone gain access to their home."

Even though car crime is decreasing, the insurance compnay thought it would be interesting to see which types of vehicle are the most likely to be targeted by criminals. It looked at statistics from the last year and found the Nissan Sunny, BMW X6 and Audi RS6 were the three cars most likely to be stolen. The Nissan Figaro is the car most likely to be broken into followed by the Citroen C8 and BMW 730.

(GK)