AN area of the Wycombe district has been ranked number 20 in a list of the top burglary hotspots across the UK.

The HP10 postcode - which also includes Flackwell Heath, Loudwater, Penn, Tylers Green, the Wooburn area, Hedsor and Handy Cross – sneaks into the final slot on the list, compiled by a website which compares insurance quotes.

This postcode area pulled in 27.3 burglary claims for every 1,000 home insurance quote enquiries over the past year.

Areas in and around London take more than half the slots on the top 20.

The top spot, however, is actually occupied by Manchester’s M21 postcode (with 45.2 theft claims in every 1,000 home insurance enquiries), while other big cities such as Birmingham and Liverpool also feature prominently.

The list was put together by MoneySuperMarket after researchers analysed 3.1 million home insurance quotes which were run through its comparison service website over the last 12 months.

Kevin Pratt, home insurance expert at MoneySuperMarket said: "Places affected by higher rates of burglary insurance claims tends to mean higher annual insurance premiums for those who live there, typically premiums are 24 per cent more expensive on average. Higher value properties could expect to pay even more than this.

"If you have not previously been burgled, but there are higher rates of burglary claims made within your postal district, you are likely to be paying steeper premiums as a result. Insurers often take a blanket approach to assessing postcode districts for home insurance premiums rather than looking at insurance applications on a case by case basis.”

He added that people living in areas affected by high rates of burglary should always shop around for the best insurance quote.