Car theft plummets

Car thieves are clearly looking to reskill, or are wary of the fact that more people are staying at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the latest data showing Australia’s national motor vehicle thefts have dropped to their lowest levels since January 2000.

According to figures just released by the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council (NMVTRC), the number of vehicles stolen in the 12 months between March 2020 and March 2021 was 45,702.

While that sounds like a very high number of vehicles being snatched, it represents a massive reduction compared to the 12 months prior, a drop of 24 per cent or 14,284 fewer vehicles stolen.

Queensland was the state with the highest number of reported vehicle thefts (10,301), followed closely by Victoria (10,268) and with New South Wales rounding out the podium (8222).

Western Australia and South Australia saw the largest falls in car theft, 34 and 32 per cent respectively.

If you’re looking to avoid having your car stolen, the safest state to own a car is the Northern Territory, which recorded 521 thefts for the 12-month period.

According to the NMVTRC, the Holden Commodore (2006 to 2013 models) is still the most popular choice for car thieves, followed closely by the Toyota HiLux (2005 to 2011 models). The Ford Ranger and Holden Captiva also feature prominently.

The drop in car thefts are partly due to COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 which severely restricted the movement of Australians – both law-abiding and criminal.

However, the NMVTRC says car owners still need to be vigilant and exercise its ‘pop-lock-stop’ procedure.

This involves popping car keys out of sight and away from windows and doors, locking doors and windows and making sure everyone in the household does the same.

Check out the NMVTRC’s Theft Watch website for more statistics and details.