Freezing conditions could result in a surge in ‘frosting’ car crime

With more freezing weather conditions being predicted, Sainsbury’s Car Insurance issues its annual warning against ‘frosting’ car crime. The bank warns that thousands of motorists could fall victim to ‘frosting’ where opportunist thieves take advantage of drivers who leave their cars unattended whilst warming up the engine. Research from the bank indicates that over the past five years, around 121,730 households may have become a victim of ‘frosting’ – around 24,346 a year.

Richard Clark, Sainsbury’s Car Insurance Manager said: "More advanced security systems, locks and immobilisers have meant that it has become more difficult to steal cars. However, many thieves are opportunists and could strike if you leave your car running unattended. We are concerned that the predicted extreme cold weather will result in more people taking the risk and becoming victims of frosting."

The cold weather can also bring with it hazardous driving conditions and Sainsbury’s Car Insurance says that you should allow plenty of time to prepare your car. Unfortunately, many motorists admit to only defrosting their front and rear windows during winter conditions and don’t check the condition of their battery or if they have enough grip on their tyres, leaving many vehicles unfit to drive.

Sainsbury’s Car Insurance offers the following cold weather motoring tips:

Make sure your car has a winter service
Check your battery
Monitor your oil, water and brake levels on a regular basis
Check front and rear wiper blades for wear or splitting
Check tyre condition for both pressure and legal tread depth - the current minimum legal tread depth for cars is 1.6mm.
Make sure you have antifreeze available should you need it
Allow your engine to run for at least five minutes before embarking on your journey – but don’t leave the car unattended whilst the keys are in the ignition
Make sure you de-ice all of your windows before driving
Ensure your lights are clean so that you can see and also be seen
Use your headlights in heavy rain or snow
Don’t drive too close to the vehicle in front of you - remember to allow more time and distance to brake and also to accelerate.
Where possible use major routes, which may have been gritted/salted.
Do take a mobile phone if you have one - remember to ensure the battery is fully charged.

Sainsbury’s Car Insurance offers competitive premiums and could save motorists up to £140. In addition to offering competitive car insurance premiums Sainsbury’s car insurance also offers motorists an extensive range of cover and benefits. This includes a courtesy car when using one of Sainsbury's Bank's recommended repairers (comprehensive cover only) and a no claim discount of 70% if you have not made a claim in the past five years, rising to 75% after a further five years’ claims free driving with Sainsbury’s car insurance. It is also one of only a few providers to offer new for old replacement child car seats after an accident as a standard feature of its comprehensive policy, even when there is no perceived damage and support and compensation if you’re a victim of car jacking or road rage.