Endsleigh News & Press Releases

Endsleigh Names the UK's Most Dangerous Motor Cities.

Claims data highlights the best and worst cities in which to own a car.

→ Motor City Top Tens

1 June 2004

Endsleigh Insurance today named the UK's most dangerous cities for car drivers in terms of accidents and thefts. By analysing more than five years of policy and claims data from across the UK – covering literally tens of thousands of cars and drivers - Endsleigh has identified both the most dangerous and the safest cities in the country in terms of motor theft and accident claims.

Endsleigh has ranked cities on the basis of the number of claims per policyholder. The data therefore shows what motorists will care about - the actual risk of them having an accident or their car stolen, rather than just the total number of incidents that have occurred in each city.

The top three in each category are:

  • Most dangerous cities for accidents:
    London
    Birmingham
    Manchester
  • Safest cities for accidents:
    Belfast
    Cambridge
    Swansea
  • Most dangerous cities for car theft:
    Leeds
    Bristol
    Manchester
  • Safest cities for car theft:
    Aberdeen
    Gloucester
    Plymouth

London is the most dangerous city when it comes to motor accidents. With almost one in five Endsleigh policyholders claiming per year, London motorists are almost 50% more likely to have an accident than the national average. London is also the fourth most dangerous city for car theft claims.

Birmingham is the second most dangerous city to drive in, with more than one in seven policyholders involved in an accident per year - but it falls outside the motor theft top ten. On the other hand, Manchester suffers the double whammy of coming third for both motor accidents and theft.

The top two cities for motor theft claims also feature in the top ten for motor accidents. Leeds is the UK's most dangerous city for motor theft and also comes ninth for accidents. Bristol is the UK's second most dangerous for theft and sixth overall for accident claims. Leeds motorists are twice as likely to suffer car theft as the national average while Bristol motorists face a 75% higher risk.

Swansea, Liverpool and Coventry have mixed results. While both Swansea and Liverpool emerge as relatively safe cities to drive in (third and sixth safest for motor accident claims respectively), they score badly for motor theft (fifth and ninth respectively). Motorists in Liverpool might be particularly interested to note that, while their city features in the league for motor theft, they are less likely to have their vehicles stolen than motorists in Leeds, Bristol, Manchester, London, Swansea, Sheffield, Nottingham and Stockport. Liverpool also emerges as the UK's sixth most accident-free city.

Belfast and Cambridge come first and second for accident safety but do not feature in either the safest or most dangerous top tens for theft.

Residents of Aberdeen, Gloucester and Edinburgh will be pleased to see their cities doing so well. Aberdeen is the safest city in the country for motor theft claims and the seventh safest for accidents. Gloucester is the second safest for accidents and the fifth safest for theft while Edinburgh is fifth safest for theft and ninth safest for accidents.

Stuart Wartalski, Endsleigh's Head of Corporate Communications, said: "This analysis is absolutely fascinating. It will no doubt provide food for thought for motorists across the country as well as for local councils and other policymakers. We have laid some preconceived opinions about certain towns and cities to rest, and have also identified areas where much has been done to counter the threats of motor accidents and theft. It is clear that some cities will need to work hard to ensure that they do not become indelibly marked as crime or accident hotspots."

"The pricing of motor insurance is based on postcodes and other data relating to both car and driver and will therefore vary within different cities. This survey underlines the risks faced by motorists in our major cities and therefore demonstrates the need for adequate insurance cover no matter where you live."

"These top tens were compiled from more than five years of policy and claims data. As such they provide a robust benchmark. It will be intriguing to see how crime initiatives such as CCTV, allied with traffic calming and congestion charging, impacts on the chart position of different cities in years to come."

Endsleigh Insurance Services Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. This can be checked on the FSA Register by visiting its web site at www.fsa.gov.uk/register.
Endsleigh Insurance Services Limited. Company No: 856706 registered in England at Shurdington Road, Cheltenham Spa, Gloucestershire GL51 4UE.