Northants centre car crime up almost 50%

Drivers in Northampton might want to take extra care of their vehicles after figures were published showing car crime in the town centre to have risen by almost 50 per cent.

Despite police having carried out a successful campaign to reduce such crime, south and central Northampton have seen rises in such activity in recent months, the Northampton Chronicle and Echo reports.

Across the county, car crime was shown to have fallen by more than 20 per cent overall, which may be good news for car and van insurance policyholders in parts other than the south and the town centre.

"Vehicle crime remains the force's biggest area of improvement and is down 22.9 per cent," commented Northamptonshire Police Authority chief constable Adrian Lee.

He added that reductions were being seen in relation to thefts of and from vehicles, but said police must ensure the figures do not rise.

"Despite the good reductions to date, the force remains vigilant in ensuring volumes do not rise towards the end of the performance year," the chief constable stated.

He went on to suggest that previous high impact campaign Operation Guardian had been a catalyst in helping to reduce vehicle crime levels.

Government figures show that car-related crime accounts for 13 per cent of all recorded offences throughout England and Wales, with levels having dropped by more than 66 per cent since their peak in 1995.

In 2007-08, vehicle crime dropped 11 per cent on the previous year, which is good news for car insurance policyholders.

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