Landrover security in Leeds

My daughter lives in Hyde Park, near the uni. The next road to hers is the most burgled road in Britain.

Enuf said?

Many Universities actively discourage car ownership due to conjestion. I wouod check to see what policy they have, especially 1st year student.

Yup, agree with all the other replies. I was brought up in Leeds, spent a postgrad year there and know the Hyde Park/Headingley area well. The area (especially Hyde Park) is dog-rough and has a bad reputation for burglary, car theft and general nastiness, although not for violence IME. A lot of the student houses have locking front doors, and then a wrought-iron grille padlocked across the porch entrance as well, with all ground-floor windows barred too. Headingley is better, and the further out you go from the city centre (up Otley Road towards the Ring Road) the better it gets for crime. Not too much of a problem, as it's all on the one bus route (still No. 9?)

Don't want to worry you with your son going there - hel'll have a great time, and it's a really nice Uni. But if I were parking a Landy in Hyde Park overnight I'd take the engine out, lock the clutch pedal, empty the fuel, remove the wheels, seats and radio, strip the paint and leave a team of hungry Alsatians in the back. They'd still nick the rust off the chassis, but hey.

I'm kidding, but not by a massive amount.

DaveP

It's terrible for all kinds of thieving!

I don't know about Land Rover specifically, but the Mem's from Headingly (University bedsit land) and its reputation for car crime horrendous.

Richard

Certainly a good advert for not living in Leeds :(

Well yes, but what about living in Manchester round Salford Uni, or Manchester - Whalley range is hardly a oasis of crime free streets.

Students tend to be easy targets - or their properties are, many of the student flats must have hundreds of keys, for friends, boyfriends and girlfriends.

Steve

Shame this topic came up, really, cos it makes Leeds sound terrible. I imagine the same problems exist in most towns/cities which have both an industrial heritage and a big University. Leeds has only just got rid of the dark satanic mills image and then this! I've had a lot of friends I've met all over the UK who have this dreadful image of Leeds. I always say to them that Leeds has the highest proportion of green space per resident of any city in Europe (it used to be true, may not be now) and the town centre is fantastic for shopping. They don't usually believe me until they go there, and then you've got another convert.

It's a great city, and I'd recommend it to anyone.

As cities go...

DaveP

It's a thousand times better than Bradford, but as in all things it's all about where you are & the people around you. Leeds is an ace city, with it's fair share of problems. Bradford ( I live in a nice bit of town) is on the whole a dump with a few nice bits.

I once had to visit the bit of "no-man's-land" between Leeds and Bradford, to get an auto gearbox sorted under warranty. It was a place called Sticker Lane Transmissions, near a roundabout type junction with a McD's close by. (I believe they now trade under a different name, wouldn't go near them again - ever!) It seemed to be a rather strange part of the world, very few people actually on the streets, and those that were probably wouldn't have understood me if I'd spoken to them! A total contrast to my previous visit to that part of Britain, Halifax. Or to be more precise, Sowerby Bridge, where the inhabitants were very open and friendly. I did ask a couple of people how far it was to walk into Leeds centre, my intention being to have a wander around the shops whilst my autobox was being fixed for the third time, but all I got was stoney looks so I gave up. Got relatives in Yeovil, now there's a place to have a good weekend! Yes, there's an element of undesirables, but then I suppose you get them everywhere that's got any sort of decent population figures nowadays. Thank god I live in the country, it's nice to visit these places but sometimes just as nice to go home again. Badger.

I agree with lot about Manchester being a Violent city. Recently there was a report of Chicken s*it Labour possible solution. This was to put the army yes the army in to quell the nightlife trouble. Inspiring aye. The problem lies in reports of crime outwaying actual crimerate to you. Your son could inquire about insurance coverage for this area. For myself in Manchester we are hit with the Postcode Lottery.

Its a nice enough place as big cities go! and has plenty going in its favour. It definately isnt a good place to keep a car if you are near the uni in the student areas though!

I felt safe enough wandering round at silly hours of the morning and at night. I just wouldnt leave a car there or leave anything valuble in a student house!

The local kids in leeds start young - we once caught a load of kids burning out a childs pedal-tricycle!

Well I have had the caravan step I use to get in the back of my landie stolen yet again, and whilst I was in the back and busy working and all. As soon as your attention is diverted, anything that is not bolted will dissapear. I reckon I will fix a bolt on step to the towbar this time.

When i moved back to Leeds (Bramley - about 4 miles from city centre)) 3 years ago from Ramsgate my insurers wanted £50 extra on premium on a policy with only 3 month left to renewal, then refused to renew when it was due.

Thanks for all the replies, chaps, I think I get the general message!

A good point on checking the insurance, though, the insurance for my other son's old 1984 90 nearly doubled when we told them that although our Kent address was his home, he lived in Chester for over half the year as a student and parked on the road.

Gordon (CoC for tomorrows SROC RTV trial if anyone's interested, nr Westerham, Kent)

On my last day in central Reading while packing to move to the country, I had to lock the back of the landy in between carrying loads out to it, the only time I didn't I came out to find one of the local homeboys nosing around in the back of it. I think they live in the drains and pop up whenever they sense an opportunity, they must do something like that in order to be everywhere at once! A chav-zone at one end and a town centre at the other isn't a good recipe for a nice road to live on.

I used to live on a road in gateshead that was a main road into newcastle. I was once working in the back of the land rover when my drill suddenly stopped, I got out to check the extension lead connections and a 30 foot length of extension lead was missing.... I have since moved a long long way away.

Regards. Mark.

In news: snipped-for-privacy@g47g2000cwa.googlegroups.com, snipped-for-privacy@drytecltd.com blithered:

Too far, I'm afraid Gordon, enjoyed Copford tho'.