GLASGOW has been revealed as the fire-raising capital of the UK in a new survey of crime-related insurance claims made by small and medium businesses.

Almost 11% of claims made by small and medium businesses (SMEs) in Glasgow in the last quarter of last year resulted from wilful fire- raising, more than twice the national average of 4.7%.

Edinburgh leads the UK in malicious damage claims by businesses with 55% of all claims in the city attributable to this crime last year, according to the report by Axa, which is one of the biggest insurers of SMEs in the UK.

The group's Business Crime Survey showed the number of crime-related insurance claims made by companies across the UK increased by 20% last year.

Claims for violent and forced entries into business buildings or offices more than doubled, while fire-raising cases increased by 20%.

The group urged businesses to conduct a review of their security arrangements, particularly because of the increase in break-ins.

Neil Mercer, of Axa, said public awareness of business crime remained low despite the millions of pounds involved.

Leicester topped the business crime league of 18 UK cities for the final quarter of last year with a 7.3% increase to 27%. More than two-thirds of all crime-related business insurance claims in the city involved theft.

It was followed by Cardiff, Nottingham, Birmingham, Derby, Liverpool and Manchester. Glasgow was placed eighth and showed a reduction of 0.6% in claims in the last quarter of 2006, bringing its total of claims to 21.5%.

Edinburgh was placed sixteenth and recorded a 4.9% reduction to 14.4%.

Dr Lesley Sawers, chief executive of Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, said: "It is disappointing to hear that business crimes appear to be on the increase throughout the UK and that Glasgow in particular has a problem with wilful fire-raising."