Vehicle theft has soared 8% in the last year, fuelled by a rise in organised gangs, high used car prices and a “low risk of capture”.

Theft numbers have got substantially worse in the last decade, as organised criminals use sophisticated new ways to steal cars

New Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures reveal there were 132,489 instances of ‘theft or unauthorised taking of a motor vehicle’ across England and Wales in the year from October 2022 to September 2023. That’s up from 122,423 in the year October 2021 to September 2022, and marks a 17% increase on the pre-pandemic year to March 2020.

Specialist motor insurance loss adjuster Claims Management & Adjusting (CMA) has said the rise is “shockingly unsurprising” as it warns of a need for urgent action following a previous Home Office Taskforce “fiasco”.

Philip Swift, a former detective and now technical director at CMA, said: “It gives me no pleasure to say it, but the only unexpected thing about these figures is that the increase isn’t higher. We have waved the white flag on vehicle theft and can only hope that these awful new government figures prompt some urgently needed action.”

Swift said that while vehicle theft hit a high of around 400,000 instances a year in the 1990s during the so-called joyriding epidemic, figures then fell to a historically low level of only 70,000 in 2013/14 as carmakers improved security, “largely designing out opportunist thefts”.

But theft numbers have been creeping back up since, as organised criminals use sophisticated new ways to steal cars, taking advantage of high vehicle values and “a seeming inattention to the crime”.

While the Home Office established the Vehicle Theft Taskforce (VTT) – which led to a detailed “overview of the threat” and a proposed “action plan” – CMA says the VTT only met once, in 2019, and doesn’t seem to have been replaced since, despite vehicle theft getting substantially worse year-on-year.

“Five years later, the number of vehicle thefts has soared and the successful recovery rate has plummeted to 23% or less (down from 80% in 2006) – a car vanishing act indicative of organised crime,” Swift elaborated.

Relay theft, key cloning and signal blocking continue to be the main methods of illegally obtaining vehicles, as thieves keep pace with manufacturers by using a variety of high-tech methods to steal them.

The CMA is calling for urgent government action now to tackle the organised gangs.

Swift added: “Crooks now consider car theft an easy win – highly lucrative with a low risk of capture, and lenient sentencing even if caught. Re-establishing the VTT and funding it properly would be a big step in the right direction.”

The AA has previously spoken out about police priorities when it comes to tackling car crime and the increasing use of technology by thieves to target victims.

Gus Park, managing director for AA Insurance Services, warned last year that vehicle theft was “getting out of control” and, if left to spiral further, would “have big cost implications in terms of the impact to wider society, let alone the price policyholders pay”.

The AA has urged police chiefs and crime commissioners across the country to create an action plan to crack the case.

But it’s also urged drivers to pay their part. While vehicle makers improve key security and encourage drivers to “put keys to sleep” to reduce high-tech types of theft, drivers can also use more traditional, visible deterrents such as steering wheel locks to deter thieves. Drivers are also advised not to store valuables in their vehicles if possible, or to keep items hidden away, and to park somewhere safe.

Speaking last year, Gus Park said: “Unfortunately, there is no one thing that can guarantee keeping your car safe from theft, but just making it a bit harder for the thieves can make it less likely that they’ll go for your car. Don’t give miscreants an easy win, make them think about finding an easier target than your pride and joy.”