Tyre Vandalism is a serious matter as it not only costs us all hundreds and sometimes thousands of pounds but it can also put both you and your passengers as well as other roads users lives at risk.

Tyre vandals where cited as the causing factor for the death of Joanne Smith in 2012 when she was involved in a fatal crash following an attack of vandals. Northamptonshire police launched a manslaughter investigation but as yet none has been brought to justice.

As well as the monetary costs the would be tyre vandals also run the risk of criminal proceedings. This could be a fine but could also be incarceration.

The legal definition of vandalism is " a deliberate act with the intention to cause damage to somebody else’s property"

This means that accidental damage is not classed as vandalism however depending on the damage and the circumstances you may still have to report the incident.

Car vandalism is nothing new and has unfortunately been around for a long time. This normally involves scratching a vehicle but more commonly this now involves slashing of tyres.

Although the fine for being caught committing vandalism is potentially up to £5,000 or up to 6 month in prison as the offended tend to be younger adults the average fine is up to £60 for offenders under the age of 16 and £80 for those over 18.

With cost of replacement tyres dependent upon the make, model and tyre size costing hundreds of pounds it is little comfort.

The good news is however that your tyre insurance 123 policy can help.

Providing that your tyre still has a minimum of 2mm of tyre tread and providing that you have reported the vandalism to the police our claims team will be able to assist. Please note that other eligibility criteria will still apply.

Should your tyre be vandalised you must report the incident to the police and make a note of your crime reference number as a member of the claims team will ask you for this during the claims procedure.

Once the crime reference has been taken the claim will be handled as normal.

Please remember that as genuinely good as we believe our tyre insurance policies to be we can not stop vandalism from happening.

Just as we can not stop your tyre from being punctured. We can however ensure that should you become a victim of tyre vandalism, have a puncture or blow out that your tyre insurance policy is here to foot the cost.