The study, by esure car insurance, revealed that car thieves targeting expensive vehicles were more likely to go after the car’s keys by stealing them directly from the owner’s home or even by following him into a gym and taking them from the locker.

Thieves also employed methods such as carjacking or taking the vehicle whilst the keys were still in the ignition and the owner was rumbling about in the boot.

“It is a concern that improvements in car security are now driving hardened criminals towards much more serious crimes in order to steal cars,” said Gordon Hannah of esure.

“Insurance is there to protect our customers’ cars but this type of theft puts car owners and their homes at risk too.”