We all fear the prospect of our cars being vandalised, especially when we don’t have the luxury of off-street parking.

Leaving your pride and joy at the side of the road is worrying enough and we always do what we are advised to do, namely make sure all valuables are either removed or hidden from sight and that the doors are locked securely.

Wise advice indeed, but there are some threats to our cars which simply cannot be protected against, no matter how much we might try.

Take the unfortunate car owner featured in The Argus today, whose prized Lexus came under attack from an unlikely vandal... a large and aggressive seagull.

The bird mistook its reflection for another seagull and duly launched a frenzied attack on the passenger door, no doubt inflicting some damage to the paintwork, which can be extremely costly to repair.

However, seagulls are part and parcel of living near the seaside and on top of that they are a protected species.

They can be an absolute pain, however.

One minute you are happily walking along in the sunshine, eating an ice cream, the next...

whoosh and it’s gone, whisked away by an airborne criminal with all the tools for a quick getaway.

There is also an aerial threat with equally serious repercussions for your carefully assembled outfit, but nevertheless, they are here and here to stay, for better or worse.

Surely, though, most of us would agree they have a certain charm and that Brighton and Hover certainly wouldn’t be the same without them