Millions of motorists in the UK are victims of vandalism each year, the most common forms being scratching of paintwork (often with a key), damage to wing mirrors and smashing of windows. Other more serious forms of motor vandalism include slashing of tyres and graffiti. Although these acts are most often carried out under cover of darkness, around a third of offences are committed in broad daylight, meaning that many of us feel very vulnerable.

It is difficult to be precise about the exact number of attacks on cars by vandals because such a large percentage of those victimised choose not to report it to the police, either because it is too much trouble and there is no evidence which would help catch the perpetrator, or because the damage was relatively minor.

However, as many of us know to our cost, even apparently minor damage can cost a fortune to have repaired and it is often a dilemma knowing whether to claim on your insurance policy, given the implications of losing your no claims discount.

Good news is, however, at hand for the over 50s at least. Saga have just announced that they will be offering protection for motorists’ no claims discount even if they have to make a claim for damage caused by vandalism. This will be offered to all new customers and to existing customers from their next renewal date. Anyone making such a claim will of course still have to pay the policy excess and also provide a Crime Reference number from the police.

Are you the sort of person who cannot resist buying the latest technological gizmo? If so, do you take them out and about with you when you are on the road? You have probably never stopped to work out just how much these gizmos are worth and unfortunately this could mean that, were disaster to strike and your car broken into, you could well be left out of pocket.

More than 8 million drivers have over £200 worth of gadgets and gizmos in their car at any one time and yet the standard cover for personal effects on a motor policy is normally only between £100 and £200.

A recent survey carried out by Saga Insurance found that 25% of us would be left facing a large bill for replacements if our technological investments were stolen. The insurer, catering for the over 50s market, is now offering cover of £1,000 for personal belongings, which very conveniently rises to £2,000 for the month of December to cater for Christmas presents.

This should hopefully cover the mobile phones and blackberries which over 40% of us have with us in the car, the GPS devices which 32% of us won’t leave home without, the DVD players, iPods and laptops which are a travelling must for 12% of us, and even the speed camera detectors which 4% of us confess to owning.

At the end of the day, even if you are covered by your insurance policy, the best rule of thumb is to hide any gadgets from view if they have to be left in the car and, where possible, it makes sense to remove them from the vehicle altogether.

There’s bad news for car owners as new figures released by The AA show that premiums are rising at their fastest rate for nearly a decade. The research showed that there was a massive 11% rise in premiums over the last year which means many car owners are suffering as a result.

Different types of insurance policies have been going up at different rates. The research showed that the average premium for an annual comprehensive policy rose by 3.5% between April and June this year to a figure of £778.13. And the average third party, fire and theft policy, which is popular with younger drivers, rose by an even higher 4.6% in the same period, now costing £968.22. This means that young drivers are suffering the most, especially as half of all insurance providers are now simply refusing to insure anyone under the age of 21.

There are multiple reasons for this sudden rise in premiums. The first is that when people make injury claims on their insurance, the costs involved, including all the legal expenses, are far higher than they used to be. The other problems are that many more people are making false claims on their insurance as well as driving without insurance, which alone adds an extra £30 onto premium costs.

But despite the rise in premiums, car owners who shop around can still find a few good deals. The research revealed that those shopping around could expect to pay an average of £526.42 for fully comprehensive insurance. Other tactics for reducing insurance costs include keeping the car in a garage and fitting a security device.

If you own a top-of-the-range car then you’ll probably take extra precautions with it as a matter of practice, but now there is even more impetus to do so. LV= has just carried out a survey into car thefts in the UK and has found that the average value of cars being stolen between the months of January and May this year was 38% higher when compared to the same period last year.

This is a massive rise, and it seems to be following a trend because the figure is an even bigger 44% higher than the year before. The reason behind this could be partly due to the recession, with car thieves trying to make more money from the best models. But it is also part of a growing trend to steal high-end models and then take them abroad to be sold.

LV= also discovered that there were some parts of the country that were worse when it came to car theft. Cardiff, London and Manchester were all hotspots for car crime, meaning if you live in one of these areas you’ll want to take extra precautions. However, there was some good news as the overall number of thefts was down by 11% between 2007 and 2008.

John O’Rourke, the car insurance managing director at LV=, said that “motorists need to take extra care” if they own a higher-end model as it will prove a more tempting proposition for a thief. He recommended a range of methods for keeping vehicles safer, including fitting a tracker or an immobiliser, as well as the more obvious practice of locking it away in a garage. These measures not only keep the vehicle safer, but they also have the dual advantage of keeping insurance premiums down.