An "idiotic" would-be car thief has been caught on CCTV bungling an attempt to break into a Mercedes.

Footage shows a hooded man wandering suspiciously along Queen's Road in Tankerton and tentatively trying the car's door handles.

He then breaks a hole in the front passenger window with what appears to be a hammer.

Glancing around sheepishly - and staring directly at the CCTV camera facing him - he then smashes the glass through with his hand.

But when the car's alarm begins sounding, the would-be thief appears startled - and scurries away from the scene.

Owner of the car Matthew Langford has shared footage of the incident - which happened at about 5.30am on Saturday - on social media, where it has already amassed about 8,000 views.

Many viewers have branded the man "idiotic" - and have questioned why he appears surprised to find the car is alarmed.

Mr Langford said: "He's clearly not a professional. He's just a toe rag who's going around with one of those £5 hammers from Halfords.

"The car might be a Mercedes but it's 13 years old - a family car used to take things to the tip.

"He clearly wasn't thinking. There's nothing worth stealing in cars - if you're lucky you might find somebody's spare phone. It's not like breaking into a van with hundreds of pounds worth of tools in.

"It's not like he saw something worth breaking in for, like a phone on the car seat. It's just breaking in for the sake of it.

"I don't know what he was expecting. Nearly all cars have alarms these days."

Luckily, Mr Langford has fully comprehensive insurance - but the mindless act will still cost him £100 in window repairs.

"It's pretty inconvenient," he added.

Police say they are investigating the report of criminal damage.

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