Keep your car keys beach ready

“We’ve recently had claims for keys lost on beaches in the sand, keys falling out of pockets into the sea when boarding boats, and even keys dropping down a drain,” says Lee Puffett, Managing Director of Start Rescue.

It pays to keep keys safe when a replacement key costs an average of £372, rising to as much as £530 for some makes and models.

As soon as you’ve locked your car, you should put the keys in a waterproof bag or pocket in a backpack. Many bags have zipped pockets with a hook that attaches to your keys and keeps them safe.

You can hide keys inside clothing with an internal pocket. Lots of beach clothes now incorporate this feature, but beware of going into the water with your keys – always keep them dry.

If your car is parked close to where you are on the beach, a “Faraday” pouch will prevent keyless theft by blocking the fob’s signal being intercepted by criminals.

Fitting a security tracker tag will let you find your keys’ approximate location even if they become buried under sand, and these tags are cheap and easy to fit.

Lee Puffett adds: “We see lots of unpredictable lost key issues, so it saves customers a great deal of time and money to check their keys are secure immediately after they lock their cars.

“These five easy steps make a big difference to avoid you losing keys and to prevent crime. Even though our policies include cover for lost or broken keys, and keys locked inside the car (excluding costs for a replacement key), it’s much better to keep them safe in the first place.”

• Keep your keys dry
• Hide your keys
• Clip keys inside a backpack or pocket
• Add a security tracker tag
• Use a Faraday pouch