Vehicle Crime is exploding in Europe
The number of car thefts increased significantly in the first half of this year. New figures from the Vehicle Crime Insurance Bureau (VbV) show that criminals are becoming increasingly cunning. Cars are also increasingly disappearing to African countries.
A total of 3,645 passenger cars were stolen, an increase of over 20 percent compared to the same period last year. Eindhoven saw the highest number of stolen cars, followed by Amsterdam and The Hague.
The Toyota RAV4 topped the list of most stolen cars, with 232 cases. The Kia Sportage was also noticeably popular with thieves: the number of thefts of that model quadrupled, from 19 to 82.
Theft method via the headlight or CAN BUS
According to the VbV, car thieves have clever tricks and devices that make stealing cars relatively easy. For example, they plug a device into the headlight, which then starts the engine and they can drive away.
The stolen cars are then increasingly shipped to countries like Ghana by container. The containers are reportedly rarely inspected, and hybrid cars are popular in Africa.
Criminals are also increasingly trying to steal expensive cars. As a result, the average loss per stolen car reported to insurers has risen by 30 percent to €17,500. Total claims increased by 60 percent to €64 million.
The VbV also works to recover stolen cars. They do this by reading the so-called telematics in vehicles, allowing a manufacturer to remotely track a car's location.
This shows that there are still over 200 cars driving around in Ghana. Retrieving these cars is difficult and expensive.
However, over 7,000 vehicles were recovered, most of them in the Netherlands. Outside the Netherlands, many vehicles also surfaced in Germany, Belgium, Bulgaria, and Poland.
Source: https://nos.nl/artikel/2574588
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