Almost a third of first-year car accidents happen within two months of delivery, suggesting that if you've ever had your brand new car scraped, you're not alone.

Accident management company Accident Exchange examined its records for the last 12 months and found that 10% of all accidents involved cars less than a year old, while 32% of those happened in the first two months of ownership.

The average day the damage was done is the 57th after taking delivery, its figures say, while the repair bill is estimated at nearly £402m – for just one year.

The average repair cost is £2,050, with an estimated 2.2 million accidents in the 12 months, including those that went unreported.

All-in-all, the study estimates that 62,720 cars aged two months or less were involved in prangs, which rises to 196,000 cars with 15 or 65 number plates over the full year.

Scott Hamilton-Cooper, director of operations at Accident Exchange, said: 'Any accident is a traumatic and emotional experience for the driver and passengers, but this increases for those driving brand new vehicles usually costing a lot of money.

'Buying a new car is a big deal – the old adage that it's the second largest purchase most people will make after a home still rings true.

'Whenever a driver reports a crash to us, we make sure they are back on the road as swiftly as possible and that their vehicle is repaired according to strict manufacturer approved guidelines. The vehicle should always be returned to factory finish condition for safety reasons – and because it is someone's pride and joy.'