Arse 2!
Googling around shows us (although I can't find a nice graph anywhere) that car crime in the UK is falling. This is probably largely due to the increased security of vehicles and the focus on immobilisation.
This rather vague [link|http://www.crimereduction.gov.uk/statistics28.htm|graph] shows that car crime has fallen by 31% (it says further down) since 1997.
I found this table on [link|http://www.elephant.co.uk/Press_releases/Press_Office/press_releases/general/Press_Release_29-04-03.phtml|this] page.
| Nationality | Overall | Stolen outright | Broken into |
| German | 1st | 3rd | 2nd |
| American | 2nd | 1st | 6th |
| British | 3rd | 2nd | 7th |
| Italian | 4th | 6th | 1st |
| Japanese | 5th | 4th | 3rd |
| Korean | 6th | 8th | 4th |
| French | 7th | 7th | 5th |
| Swedish | 8th | 5th | 8th |
| Spanish | 9th | 9th | 9th |
| Czech | 10th | 10th | 10th |
Not exactly cheery reading for me, as you can imagine. I'm trying to persuade the neighbours to buy a Mercedes SLK to distract the hordes of thieves.
The good news for motorists is that car crime is actually falling in the UK as security devices improve and we all become more aware of the risks involved. However if you want to cut the risk of car crime even further, it may be worth considering buying a Skoda, a Seat or a Volvo.
Hahayeahrightnothanks. Skoda: Fine cars. Ugly-ass. Poor residuals. Seat: Expensive to get one with any poke at all. (The Leon Cupra is a nice motah, but results in a sharp, stabbing pain in the wallet) Volvo: It's a Ford, these days.
So why are the insurance companies rates going UP instead of DOWN?
The only reasonable theory I can come up with is that accident rates (and therefore payouts) are going up.
However, looking at [link|http://www.driveandstayalive.com/info%20section/statistics/stats-uk.htm|this] page, that's not the case; down is the trend in all categories of accident and casualties, from pedestrians to HGVs, with the sole exception that there were more knobbers who caused drink-driving related accidents. Bastards.
One is forced to the inevitable conclusion that, fellow Brit drivers, we're being robbed. £745 for fully comp on a 6-year old car when I've got a clean licence and 3 years NCB? Giraffe, but that was the cheapest I found.
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