More than half of British police forces witnessed a rise in vehicle break-ins from 2015 to 2016 with nearly a quarter of a million vehicles broken into in 2016.

British police forces witnessed a rise in vehicle break-ins

Data reported by RAC Insurance shows a total of 239,920 vehicle break-ins were reported to 42 police forces – 8,698 more than in 2015 (231,222), representing a 4% increase. However, this is a 9% reduction on 2013 when there were 263,574 thefts from vehicles.

The responses to a freedom of information request made by RAC Insurance reveal that the City of London constabulary saw the largest rise with a 76% increase (46 to 81). Northamptonshire experienced the second greatest rise with 41% (2,864 to 4,043). Wiltshire Police (1,680 to 2,074) and Dyfed-Powys (446 to 549) were joint third with a 23% increase.

RAC Insurance director Mark Godfrey said: “The old advice of making sure nothing of value is left on display inside a car is still as valid as ever, but it is also important when parking in public places to try to opt for well-lit and well used spots so as to make it harder for criminals to break in without being seen.”

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