One in seven burglaries last year was carried out solely in an attempt to steal the homeowner’s personal details, according to a new report by LV= .
The home insurer found that a quarter of all burglary victims in the past year fell victim to ID fraud as a direct result of a break in.
‘ID burglary’ is estimated to cost the UK over £150 million per year to rectify.
Among all break-ins, almost three quarters (74 per cent) now result in the theft of personal and financial documents such as credit cards, driving licences and bank statements and 15 per cent of victims are targeted specifically for documents containing their personal details.
ID fraud is expected to double in the next five years and this type of crime will probably increase in the coming years. The report also showed the number of home burglaries involving personal data theft is predicted to rise by 33 per cent year on year if ID fraud continues to increase at its current rate.