Green or black Mercedes cars are the most targeted by crooks in Milton Keynes

Over the past year the city has suffered 1,083 vehicle thefts or break-ins. This equates to four offences per 1,000 of the population in MK.

MoneySuperMarket studied police data on the rate of car thefts in the Thames Valley area to find where has the highest rates of vehicle vandalism.

They found Mercedes are the most likely cars to be vandalised, followed closely by two more German makes, BMW and Audi.

By contrast, Seat and Citroen owners escape with the fewest cases of vandalism, with Seat vehicles being over three times less likely to be vandalised than Mercedes.

Green and black vehicles were more likely to be targeted, with 1.5 and 1.4 cases reported per 1,000 respectively. White vehicles rank third of ‘most likely to be vandalised’ with 1.3 reported cases.

Blue is the safest colour, with one case of vandalism – the lowest rate reported. Silver and red follow closely behind, with 1.1 cases per 1,000 policies each.

The research also showed that nearly three quarters of Brits don’t even claim on their insurance after falling victim to vandalism, due to fears of losing their no-claims bonus.

Rachel Wait, consumer affairs spokesperson at MoneySuperMarket, said: “Only one in four victims of vandalism decide to report the incident to their insurance company, possibly due to concerns about losing their no-claims discount. However, some insurance providers protect a driver’s no-claims bonus for cases of vandalism, so it’s worth double checking your policy as you may be protected without realising.

She added: “A comprehensive car insurance policy is likely to cover you for these offences, as opposed to a third-party policy. Be sure to shop around for the best deal online and look out for vandalism cover in your policy for peace of mind. ”

See the UK's car vandalism hotspots here.