ONLY a half of houseowners with a garage use it for its real purpose -- housing a car.

For the rest it is a space for stacking tools and DIY equipment, gardening tackle, the washing machine and freezer or garden furniture.

According to a survey by Halifax Home Insurance 30% said they use their garage as a workshop or space for pursuing their hobby, 5% use it as a playroom for their children and 2% use it as a personal gym.

In my row there are seven homes, of those five have garages and there's only me locks my car away -- and that's because it makes my insurance cheaper.

If all the others did the same, and I know there is the space in them, the area would look less like a supermarket car park.

I put it down to idleness half the time.

While the garage is a handy place to locate items that are not wanted hanging around the home, the company is warning that people are storing a considerable number of expensive possessions which are not always adequately protected against eagle-eyed burglars.

Theft from garden sheds and garages is one of the fastest growing crimes in the country and people are advised to make sure they are burglar proof with adequate security locks and bolts.

A dog also helps. In my case one of my sadly demised Jack Russells obviously spotted a chance raider come down the hill behind my home and climb over the fence behind the garage and alerted us. He soon vanished empty-handed when the little rascal was let loose.