Yahoo Finance 
Where you're most likely to have your mobile stolen
You're more likely to have your mobile phone stolen in Cardiff than any other town or city in the UK, particularly if you're in your 20s, new research claims.
Edinburgh is the second biggest mobile phone theft hotspot, followed by Hull and then Leicester.
Cities with large student populations top the list, with the highest number of claims coming from people aged between 21 and 25.
The top 10 hotspots
Gadget insurer Protect Your Bubble says 36% of claims it received from Cardiff residents concerned stolen mobile phones.
Edinburgh is in second place with 32% of claims and the only Scottish city to be included in the top 10 list.
Surprisingly London only makes it to sixth place with 21% of all claims relating to stolen phones.
At the other end of the scale the least likely places for phone theft are Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, with only 7.7% of claims, and Plymouth with 8.4%.
Rank | City | Percentage of phone theft claims |
1 | Cardiff | 36% |
2 | Edinburgh | 32% |
3 | Hull | 30% |
4 | Leicester | 28% |
5 | Bristol | 24% |
6 | London | 21% |
7 | Manchester | 20% |
8 | Southampton | 19% |
9 | Leeds | 18% |
10 | Coventry | 17% |
When looking at the numbers of other gadgets which had been reported stolen, sat navs topped the list, while music players, such as iPods, were least likely to be stolen.
Mobile phone owners living in Manchester and Bradford are the most careless with their mobiles; these areas have the highest number of claims in the UK for lost phones.
[Where to sell your old mobile to pay for the new iPhone]
How to protect your phone
The research from Protect Your Bubble only relates to the company’s own claims, so it’s not representative of the entire population. It’s also one of the cheapest policies to take out so could reflect the budgets of people living in the areas at the top of the table.
However, it’s an interesting look into where people are claiming for stolen phones and shows a real difference between cities like Leicester with 28% of claims and Liverpool with 10.3%.
There are a lot of student areas in the list. They are easy prey for criminals because of the amount of expensive gadgets they take away with them.
Keeping your phone out of sight, writing down its IMEI number, and keeping a lock on the keypad are all smart things to do. But if it is stolen you should call your provider to block it straight away, and report the crime to the police who will give you a crime number.
The right kind of phone insurance
Mobile phones are expensive; the latest iPhones launched this week start at £469 for the 5C and £549 for the 5S. Therefore it’s important if you have a mobile phone, whether you're a student or not, it’s protected.
There are several companies offering standalone mobile phone insurance but these are typically more expensive than a home contents policy and less likely to pay out.
When you buy home contents insurance you can list your mobile phone and gadgets on the policy. There may be a charge for this, which is normally around £30 a year. This is called ‘personal possessions’ cover and can include anything you own up to a certain value (normally £2,000).