THE Hampshire town of Chandler’s Ford has been named as one of the places where you are least likely to be burgled.

According to new research, it is one of several Hampshire postcodes not considered a break-in hotspot, with less than one household in every 1,000 claiming on their insurance.

It joined Hampshire places like Havant and Basingstoke, which came top in the list, as well as Bideford in Devon and East Riding in Yorkshire.

Analysis, done by comparison site MoneySuperMarket, showed the riskiest places for burglary were London and Manchester, with 45.2 theft claims in every 1,000 enquiries.

The research analysed 3.1 million home insurance quotes run on the site in 12 months.

Burglary figures are based on claims made in the last two years, at the current address lived in – with 13,900 ‘theft of contents’ claims analysed to determine the hotspots.

Alan Broadhurst, Eastleigh councillor for Chandler’s Ford West, said this backed up his information from police that crime rates in the community were low.

He said: “I’d like to think it’s the community – we all try to look after one another – but I also think that perhaps people in Chandler’s Ford tend to be more security conscious.”

He said a spate of burglaries a few years ago created heightened awareness, and added that the Neighbourhood Watch Scheme was very active.

Guy Smales, president of the Eastleigh Neighbourhood Watch Association, said he thought that Chandler’s Ford was part of a low burglary trend in the Eastleigh area generally.

But he added that of the 350 neighbourhood watch schemes in the Eastleigh area, Chandler’s Ford had most of the five districts.

“It does tend to confirm that general feeling there is that Neighbourhood Watch has a positive effect,” he added.

Jim Maddan, chairman of the Neighbourhood and Home Watch Network for England and Wales, said: “It’s always worth investing in security measures for your home.

“Belonging to a Neighbourhood Watch or Home Watch scheme has also been proven to reduce your chances of getting burgled.

“Crime does not flourish in communities where people care about each other.”