Motorists in the Midlands are more likely to suffer a scratch or a dent after leaving their vehicle in a car park than anywhere else in the country, according to research conducted by Ford.

57% of Midlanders reported damage to their motors caused by other drivers’ doors, compared with 49 per cent of drivers in the North of England and 54 per cent in the South.

The research comes as Ford launch their new door protector feature on the 2012 Focus, a protective flap that activates as the door is opened and stops it from doing any damage to neighbouring cars.

A clever piece function, the protector retracts automatically in just 60 milliseconds to tuck safely away – even if you slam the car door.

Matthew Avery from the UK Motor Insurance Repair Research Centre said: “The small scuffs and scratches that result from having a car door opened into your own vehicle can be frustrating for car owners – they are often too small to be covered by insurance, but expensive to have repaired out of car owners’ own pockets.”

Unfortunately, having this feature on your car will only stop you damaging other cars – not the other way around.

So you’d better hope that the next car door that hits yours is attached to a Ford Focus. . .