Police have reported an increase in illegal ‘chop shops’ nationwide as thieves capitalise on the rising cost of car parts.

Police forces and Tracker uncovered 37 chop shops in the first half of 2024 compared to 55 for 2023 as a whole

A joint operation between UK police forces and Tracker Network UK uncovered 37 chop shops – used to strip and dismantle stolen cars – over the first six months of 2024. The figure is over two-thirds of the way to reaching 2023’s total of 55. It also significantly exceeds the two chops shops that Tracker helped police shut down in 2020.

Vehicles are now worth more to criminals dismantled than whole, as the price of new replacement parts for cars continues to grow dramatically.

Clive Wain, head of police liaison at Tracker, explained: “On-going geopolitical unrest is still affecting the supply of parts, which has been unpredictable for a while now. Add to this, continuing financial struggles for many which are fuelling illegal activity, and resulting in vehicles of all ages and values becoming targets for thieves.”

Criminals are now stealing vehicles to order to strip them for parts which they can then sell-on for “eye-watering sums” on the black market.

“It’s not only the domestic market where parts achieve big ticket prices,” Wain continued. “Thieves will often ship stolen parts overseas too, to places such as Africa and the Middle East where they can be sold even more lucratively.”

The cost of SUV parts has risen faster than other car types. Brake discs and pads, for example, have risen by 37% on SUVs, compared with 22% for hatchbacks and 20% for saloons. For pollen filters, SUV prices are up by 48%, against 41% for hatchbacks and 35% for saloons, while for windscreen wiper blades, SUVs have seen a 25% increase, against 22% for saloons and 19% for hatchbacks. Hatchbacks, however, have seen the biggest increase on spark plugs, with a 37% rise versus 29% for saloons and SUVs.

The chop shop locations were uncovered as a direct result of Tracker’s combined VHF and GPS/GSM technology covertly fitted to stolen vehicles, leading police directly to them.

Industrial-sized jammers continue to be used by thieves to block the signal from GPS and GSM-only stolen vehicle locators. However, Tracker’s technology is immune to GPS/GSM signal jamming so can lead police directly to chop shops where stolen cars fitted with its devices were being hidden.

As well as recovering large numbers of Tracker installed stolen vehicles, the discovery and closure of the chop shops also uncovered hundreds of other stolen vehicles, and critically put the brakes on numerous illegal parts operations.

Clive Wain went on: “Determined career criminals are a hard nut to crack and whilst we work hand-in-hand with police daily to find and shut down illegal chop shops, the lucrative nature of the ‘business’ means they spring up again. And thieves are getting wise. Chop shops have typically been tucked away in industrial parks or in plain sight as legitimate bodyshops, but we have seen an increasing number of unusual sites being used to hide stolen vehicles and parts, such as agricultural greenhouses.”

Tracker has also stressed the need for vehicle owners to do all they can to maximise the security of their vehicles and make life as tricky as possible for car thieves.

Simple measures such as crook locks and parking security posts deter opportunistic thieves and tech such as video doorbells and motion-activated security lights can play their part in making thieves think twice before stealing a vehicle.

Drivers should also protect their key fob. Keyless car theft works through a relay-style electronic device tricking the key fob signal into thinking the key is near to the car and then the device can assume all key fob power.

Drivers can prevent so-called ‘relay attacks’ by keeping the key – and the spare too – away from where the vehicle is kept when not in use, and blocking the signal by keeping the key fob in a closed tin or Faraday bag. However, the market is being flooded by imitation Faraday pouches and Tracker has also warned drivers this week not to cut corners when buying Faraday pouches and to test them thoroughly themselves.

Other vehicle security tips include parking in well-lit areas, visible markings on common stolen parts and investing in a stolen vehicle recovery solution.