This week, the National Insurance Crime Bureau released their annual list of the top ten stolen cars in the USA.  Top of that list is the 1994 Honda Accord, which is one of seven models on that list which are over 11 years old. This challenges the perception, promoted in many Hollywood films, that car thieves target high value sports or luxury models.  Whilst those models may be worth more, they are more difficult to sell and usually better protected than the older mainstream models for which there is a high demand for spare parts.

Their popularity also means a steady stream of buyers which lends a great deal of anonymity to the process of selling lower value vehicles, either whole, or chopped into components.  A lower profit margin, but a much lower risk and a far higher potential turnover, means that thieves like the same cars we do…

This situation is not unique to the USA, the most stolen cars in 2010 around the world are also some of the most popular selling models, and there isn’t a high powered Italian sports car amongst them:

In addition to their resale value, or the combined value of their components, many vehicles are also stolen for use in other crimes.  Light vans are targeted for their carrying capacity, sports saloons for their speed, SUV’s for ram raiding, and mainstream models for making inconspicuous drug runs. In Russia, a scrappage scheme introduced to stimulate new car sales by a government subsidy that fixed the trade-in price for an old vehicle, led to a huge increase in the theft of virtually worthless old Lada models.  The trade-ins were rarely scrutinised, and were immediately scrapped, so many stolen cars were easily turned into new car discounts.

To learn more about which cars thieves are targeting and why, then sign up for our free whitepaper titled “Why are Cars Attractive to Thieves?”, by emailing Kavitha at kkuppuswamy@sbd.co.uk.

SBD have been analysing theft targets and trends for many years, looking at which vehicles thieves prefer to steal.  Our latest report compares the situation in the UK, where the Thatcham requirements demand a high level of security performance, with the four biggest left hand drive markets of France, Germany, Italy and Spain and notes an increase in features in left hand drive markets.  The top ten stolen models, and the top ten models sold are analysed to understand what security features are fitted and an explanation of the different market requirements is included.  To find out more about SBD/SEC/2311 ”Increasing Security in Left Hand Drive Europe”, contact Alessio at aballatore@sbd.co.uk