Don’t count on it. Équité Association released its report on 2024 auto theft rates in Canada, and while there is good news — the country saw a decline of 18.6% over 2023 — auto theft is still a huge factor in the crime arena. It is still wreaking havoc with how much we all pay in increased premiums as well as fueling violent crime worldwide.
Canada continues to be a global hotspot for car theft, and it’s time to discuss how the efforts of manufacturers, insurance companies, and vehicle owners to combat it could be approaching cross purposes. In a market of duelling theft solutions, consumers are increasingly feeling the heat of additional expenditures.
How much is too much?
First, the encouraging news. Bryan Gast, Équité Association’s vice president of investigative services, credits law enforcement for most of the win in decreasing stolen vehicles. “We’ve seen concerted coordination between every level of law enforcement, including municipal forces, provincial police, RCMP, the border agents with CBSA [Canadian Border Services Agency] as well as international forces,” he says. He points to ongoing repatriations of stolen vehicles from over 50 countries.
Quebec saw the biggest reduction in stolen vehicles, dropping 32.4%. Ontario was down 17.4%, though at nearly 25,000 stolen vehicles, it is still the country’s hotspot for theft. The Atlantic region held steady and the western part of the country saw an overall decline of 12.7%. Gast says about 40% of stolen vehicles remain unrecovered. We’ve been hearing for years how your Range Rover is snatched out of your driveway and is in a shipping container heading for ports half a world away within hours.
Things are changing. Instead of your SUV just being whisked away, the crime circuit has shifted. “They’re chopping them,” says Gast. “We’re seeing a resurgence in vehicles being chopped for parts. Recently in the Waterloo region, 52 chopped vehicles were discovered. Highlanders, Tundras, Lexus SUVs, Rams and F150s. Thieves will always pivot to the best way to make the most money.” Those dips in theft in places like Quebec? “Organizations move on. We see it repeatedly,” says Gast, acknowledging that as law enforcement makes inroads in one area, thieves simply reconfigure or change their hunting grounds. Whack-a-mole car theft. And now, all those previously stolen high-end vehicles need parts.
Insurance companies may require an accredited anti-theft device
Gast acknowledges that vehicle owners have contributed to the decline in theft rates, increasingly through tracking systems mandated by their insurance companies. A reader contacted me a few months back, enraged. He’d purchased a high-end vehicle and his insurance had made him install its accredited anti-theft tracker system. I’ve outlined the efforts insurance companies have been taking to rein in their escalating costs especially in high-risk Ontario.
Surcharges are being applied to a list of vehicles most targeted by thieves, and owners have to dish out extra money to avoid them. The problem came when this reader attempted to change insurance companies. The new one told him the system he’d installed was not on its list, and he would have to purchase another one.
See where this is headed? Private insurance companies have basically coalesced around two products: TAG and KYCS. Both track stolen vehicles, though two experts I spoke with each cited TAG’s use of UHF RFID (radio frequency ID) as too easily challenged. Like Équité, I believe more should be done by auto manufacturers to tackle theft. I can’t think of another major, common purchase that is so easily stolen that consumers wouldn’t demand its maker provide better protection. Most manufacturers do have tracking systems in their vehicles, but most of them make their customers pay extra for it. That does not serve consumers well.
A recent article in Canadian Auto Dealer (CAD) brought up issues that dealers are facing with theft prevention systems in the aftermarket. It raises some great points that impact consumers.
The dealers’ complaint is two-pronged: dealers have to insure their stock and are running into insurance companies not recognizing next-gen systems many feel are superior to older ones.
“The insurance industry is being accused of moving too slowly to recognize these new devices and not offering dealers and consumers any insurance relief,” says CAD. The article points to winter tires being required for insurance rebates, but the wide range of options that consumers have to purchase them. Their concerns have real-world applications, like this Lexus owner who voided his warranty with a device he thought was compliant.
You have to untangle the arguments being presented. Dealers would prefer to make a cut of any aftermarket additions being made to vehicles they sell, like rustproofing, paint protection and theft deterrents. Insurance companies have overwhelmingly been requiring the TAG system in vehicles, which is usually done through Speedy Auto Glass. It makes sense the dealers would like to wrestle money away from another entity, especially for something that is being mandated. A customer can’t say no. But with no industry-wide standards, that same consumer is now shackled to that insurance provider or forced to pay again, like my reader. That’s not fair.
Regulating tracking systems
If things like tracking systems are here to stay — and those lowered year-over-year theft rates are encouraging but the problem still looms — we’re going to need new regulatory oversight to make the playing field fair for those who create new, better products, as well as for consumers who are required to purchase them. There are a few options that should be considered:
- Manufacturers: Vehicles built with anti-theft systems that satisfy the insurance industry’s requirements. With OEM tracking systems having schematics that thieves could use, we’re back to immobilizers. Canada’s code was last updated in 2007 — Jurassic era in the tech field.
- Standards: The same way the “snowflake” etched on winter tires indicates it meets Canadian standards, a standard should be implemented for anti-theft devices to ensure choice for consumers.
- Transparency: Consumers need to know systems they buy are current and effective and won’t void warranties.
How can any of us — insurance companies, brokers, the media — be taken seriously with our messaging of “if your rates are too high, shop around” when a lack of standardized requirements essentially strips the consumer of their ability to “shop around”?
Emerging tech needs a way to be recognized.
Only one major carrier — CAA — is advocating for ways to prevent theft instead of wasting resources chasing after stolen vehicles. From The Club to immobilizers to kill switches, CAA is using the right tactics. CAA told me several months ago that theft claims have tumbled after immobilizers had been installed. They also believe manufacturer-installed PIN codes should be used.
Auto theft may be declining, but we need a new, coordinated approach to tame the Wild West of aftermarket theft deterrents.
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