Go.Compare car insurance has found that one in six drivers (18%) have had their car keys lost or stolen, and is warning motorists to check their policy documents as not all insurance policies provide this type of cover as standard.

The research, which interviewed over 1500 motorists about whether or not they’ve had their keys lost or stolen, found that women are a lot less likely to lose their car keys than men, with 13% saying they’d previously had their car keys lost or stolen – compared with 22% of men admitting they had lost or had their keys stolen.

In response to this, the experts at Go.Compare reviewed 310** standard car insurance products and found that, while 87% of products will provide cover for stolen keys as standard, this drops to 64% when it comes to covering keys that have been lost.

The maximum amount that insurers would pay out also varies significantly between providers so the comparison site is warning car insurance customers to carefully check their policy and make sure they’re adequately covered if anything should happen.

In most cases, a car insurance policy will cover the replacement of lost, stolen or damaged keys. Some policies will also pay out for replacement locks due, but again, this amount varies between policies.

Ryan Fulthorpe, Go.Compare’s car insurance spokesperson said on the findings; “If one in six drivers are likely to lose their keys in their driving career, it makes sense to have the right amount of cover in place on their insurance policy. According to industry figures, the average cost of replacing a lost or stolen car key is £240***, but it can cost a lot more, for example, the cost of replacing a Toyota Yaris remote key is estimated at £390.

“With such a variety in costs when it comes to replacing a lost or stolen car key, including the complete replacement of a locking system for some new cars, it’s absolutely worth spending a few minutes checking your policy and the level of cover that you have in place for lost or stolen keys.

“Whilst you can’t prevent all eventualities, there are a few ways to keep your car keys safe – for example, you can download a finder app or get a Bluetooth tracking device so that if you can’t find your keys, you can locate them on a map and it will make a sound when you’re in close proximity. Also try to keep your keys in a designated place in the home, but away from external doors.”

Go.Compare has a written  guide about car keys and insurance, which can be found here: https://www.gocompare.com/car-insurance/guide/lost-car-keys-insurance/.