The areas of Swindon where you are most likely to be burgled have been revealed in new data.
Residents with a postcode starting SN4 are far more likely to be burgled than anywhere else in Swindon, according to MoneySuperMarket.
The insurance company recently analysed 7 million home insurance quotes to find the UK postcodes with the highest and lowest rates of burglary claims since 2020.
On the whole, the town ranks relatively low for burglary claims, coming 577th out of 2,377 UK postcode areas.
“There is a feeling of unsafeness in your own home that you’ve never felt before,” said Maliha Dawson, who was a victim of burglary in Swindon earlier this month.
“It's like somebody else made you feel like that and you don’t have control over it. It's terrifying.”
Swindon's ‘burglary hotspots’ most likely to be affected include Wroughton, Chiseldon and Royal Wootton Bassett.
In these areas, covered by the postcode district SN4, an average of 15 insurance claims in every 1000 are related to burglary.
This is much higher than other areas such as Stratton, where residents can sleep easy knowing only 3 in every 1000 claims will be from residents who have been burgled.
On a national scale, Birmingham has been named as the UK’s number one burglary hotspot, with an average of 58 claims per 1,000 quotes in the B94 postcode district.
Postcode areas with the lowest amount of burglaries include PE15 in Cambridgeshire and SY23 in Aberystwyth, Wales.
“While it’s not a surprise to see the list of burglary hotspots dominated by large cities, it is interesting to learn that a large proportion of people in rural areas aren’t protecting their homes with a burglar alarm,” said David McDermottre, home insurance expert at MoneySuperMarket.
“Unfortunately, the extra time spent away from our homes since people have gone back to work post-covid has provided burglars with more opportunities.
“In fact, our research found that burglary claims last year were 106% higher than those recorded in 2020, rising from 7.79 to 16.01 per 1,000 quotes,” he added.
The home insurance expert has advised that no matter how much of a burglary hotspot your postcode is, it is always a good idea to take preventative measures.
“This can be things like installing an alarm, investing in decent locks for windows and doors and keeping valuables such as laptops and keys out of sight,” Mr McDermottre explained.
You can check exactly how your postcode ranks using MoneySuperMarket’s interactive search feature here.
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