Despite Security or Because of Security? Vehicle Theft at All Time High!

Gearheadotaku (Forum Supporter) said:

What "joy" is there in driving a Hyundai or Kia?  I understand most wouldn't have means to steal a Corvette,  but why take a car that's about a much fun as a lawnmower unless you just need transportation? 

Besides just driving around like idiots and crashing the cars (whether it's a solo crash or into other vehicles), they're often used for other crimes - assault, robberies and burglaries, drive by shootings, etc.

I think sometimes they're just used for transportation.  They want to go to a club downtown and it's easier to steal a car than call Uber or take a bus.

With all the talk of sophisticated thefts, the primary situation around here seems to be people leaving their keys in the car.  My old neighbor would leave her entire key chain and purse in her Audi A8.  Until it was stolen. 

My wife locks her MINI in our locked and alarmed garage.

We had an attempted theft.  They just drive around in the early am looking for cars warming up, in the winter.  My wife started her car, went inside to grab her lunch and stuff, came out and all the storage bins were open.

She started it with the remote starter so it was stuck in park until she returned with the keys.  Local police confirmed my suspicion of attempted theft.  Way to risky for a change grab, I don't live in that neighborhood.

In British Columbia, if you leave the keys in your car, your insurance is void.

In reply to ShawnG :

Are you sure about that?

It's a commonly held belief in Ontario but it's not true, nor should it be.

Around 10-15 years ago, if you lost both keys in some cars, you needed a new ECU to start the car. Am I missing something, or is there already a solution to this problem?

Most of the vehicles stolen in Ontario and Quebec end up in containers headed to Africa and South America.  It seems to major criminal network activity and once they are in the container and in the port I understand that is is extremely hard to intercept. There is also a lot of insurance pressure on policy holders to keep vehicles in garages or have locators or physical systems like steering wheel bars. Depending where you live there are large increases in premiums if you don't comply.

Peabody said:

In reply to ShawnG :

Are you sure about that?

It's a commonly held belief in Ontario but it's not true, nor should it be.

 

I haven't confirmed with ICBC and I no longer live there but my buddy had his land cruiser stolen and when he slipped up and said that he left the keys in it, they denied his claim.

It's entirely possible they just did it to screw him over.

Either way, it's stupid to leave the keys in your car. 

Its 2024, people are still stealing cars? Identities and credit cards are much easier targets, more easily fenced, and much harder to trace. Get with the program, kids

One of our e150 vans was stollen from right in front of our shop recently. The door was unlocked. The whole thing was caught on the neighbors CCTV. Took about 17 seconds from touching the door handle to shifting into gear and pulling away.

Locksets from the 60s were so janky that 10 or 15 years later my 1964 Ranchero key would work on most Ford tumblers from the time. 

In reply to Kreb (Forum Supporter) :

What year is the purloined van? I'm curious as I have a 2007 e350 van that I use for my work. 

The ONLY time keys are left in a vehicle is when I'm at an event, between sessions and working grid. Car is open for anyone around to use as a pit bike if needed. 

aircooled said:

A report is out about nationwide car thefts.  I believe this is an all time high.  Population does go up, but with the massive increase in security features compared to the past you would think it would be lower.  Of course, it is seeming like, the security features, specifically keyfobs are actually making cars easier to steal.  Obviously the KIA thing is not helping, but clearly it's not just that.  I have heard there is a massive increase in Camero thefts.  For some reason their keyfobs are easier to spoof or copy(?)

Unintended consequence?

There are specifics about states in the article, but they are not surprising at all.

 

Vehicle thefts continue to surge nationwide, challenging vehicle owners and law enforcement agencies hoping to curb this growing crime trend. A new report released by the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), the nation's leading not-for-profit organization exclusively dedicated to identifying, investigating, preventing, and deterring insurance fraud and crime, shows another record-breaking year for vehicle thefts in 2023. Last year, more than one million vehicles were reported stolen and overall vehicle thefts increased about one percent nationwide from 1,008,756 in 2022 to 1,020,729 in 2023. Vehicle theft rates have risen steadily since 2019. California accounted for the highest number of vehicle thefts nationwide in 2023 with 208,668 vehicles reported stolen.  The District of Columbia had the highest theft rate across the nation in 2023 with 1,149.71 thefts per 100,000 people, which is over three times the national theft rate.

“Criminals are employing increasingly sophisticated methods to steal vehicles, including the use of advanced technology to bypass security systems,” said David J. Glawe, President and CEO of NICB. “From keyless entry hacks to relay attacks on key fobs, perpetrators are exploiting vulnerabilities in modern vehicle security measures with alarming success rates. It is critical that industry and law enforcement work together to develop more effective strategies for combating auto theft and safeguarding public safety.”

https://www.nicb.org/news/news-releases/vehicle-thefts-surge-nationwide-2023

I just skimmed the article. I don't see where it said we are at an all time high. I took away from it that things have been rising since 2019. Did I miss something?  

RaabTheSaab said:

Its 2024, people are still stealing cars? 

Around the Chicago area cars get stolen to commit another crime then they get abandoned.  All that gang banging business.