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Revealed: the UK’s top student burglary hotspot

Christina Hoghton
Written By:
Christina Hoghton
Posted:
Updated:
30/09/2016

Twickenham is the UK’s top student burglary hotspot, followed by the West Yorkshire trio of Leeds, Bradford and Huddersfield, according to research by Moneysupermarket.
 
The price comparison site analysed two million home insurance quotes run on the website by students over the last two years, to identify the ‘student towns’ with the highest and lowest rate of theft of contents from the home.

It revealed that those living in Twickenham, home of St Mary’s University, are most likely to make a claim for burglary, with a rate of 33.6 claims per 1,000 quotes.
 
Students living in Leeds are second most likely to experience theft from the home, with a rate of 30.3 claims per 1,000 quotes. Bradford students (University of Bradford) face the third highest risk, with a rate of 27.2, closely followed by their West Yorkshire neighbours in Huddersfield, fourth on the list with 26.6 claims per 1,000 quotes.
 
Welsh postcodes dominate the student towns with the lowest rate of claims, with Carmarthen (Trinity St David), Newport (Harper Adams University) and Aberystwyth (University of Aberystwyth) all featuring in the bottom five.

Cover your valuables

The analysis also reveals that students are 54% more likely than the general population to insure expensive laptops, but they are 54% less likely to insure expensive televisions.
 
Protecting their property is not as high on students’ priority lists either, with fewer students having burglar alarms, external window locks or being Neighbourhood Watch members than the general population. Only 22% of student homes have a burglar alarm fitted, compared to 30% of the general population.
 
Kevin Pratt, consumer affairs spokesperson at MoneySuperMarket, said: “Insurance is unlikely to be a priority for most students – ditto home security for those in halls or lodgings – but burglars and opportunist pilferers are always on the look-out for a soft target, so it’s important that students are aware of the risks they face and take steps to protect themselves.
 
“Insurance is essential. Some students might benefit from extended cover on their parents’ home contents policy, but it is crucial to check by reading the small print. Another option is a specialist student policy that is designed for halls or shared accommodation.”