Auto theft continues decline, remains far above historical levels
Auto theft in Canada continues to soar above historical levels, even as recent efforts to curtail vehicle thefts begin to show results, says newly released data from Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC).
Overall, the country saw a 19% decrease in insurance claims for auto theft in the first half of the year, IBC reported in a press release Wednesday. But despite this dip, auto claims have risen 148% over the past decade, with the value of those claims skyrocketing a whopping 442% between 2014 and 2024.
“Concerted actions by law enforcement, insurers, governments and drivers to combat theft are showing results, but more remains to be done,” says IBC’s vice president of strategy, Liam McGuinty. “Canada’s auto theft rates have soared in the last 10 years, placing pressure on drivers’ insurance premiums, compromising public safety, and causing Canadians concern and trauma.
“While theft frequency dropped slightly in the first six months of 2024, the problem remains significantly above historical trends.”
A decade ago, Canada-wide auto theft claims counts totalled 7,406 in the first half of 2014, with claims costs of more than $100.5 million. In the first half of 2023, claims reached 21,907, at a cost of nearly $764.6 million. By the first half of 2024, the total number of claims dropped 19.4%, or more than 4,000 to 17,647, while claims costs decreased by nearly $220 million to $533.7 million. That’s a 28.8% drop.
But the most dramatic change was between 2014 to 2024, with claims up more than 10,000, or 138%. Claims costs were up 442% from about $100.5 million in the first half of 2014 to $544.7 million in the first half of 2024.
Provincial differences
As previously reported by Canadian Underwriter, there are significant differences in auto theft between provinces.
Ontario and Quebec experienced decreases in the number of theft claims in the first half of 2024, down 16% and 41%, respectively, year-over-year.
Alberta saw a slight increase of 0.7% year-over-year, while New Brunswick’s theft claims count increased 14% year-over-year and Nova Scotia was up 27%. In Alberta, however, the value of auto theft claims has increased by 11% since 2023 and by 179% over the last decade.
“Experts credit these regional differences to the opportunistic nature of car thieves, who may be shifting their focus away from provinces like Ontario and Quebec, where law enforcement has invested significantly in combatting auto theft, toward western and Atlantic provinces,” IBC says.
New, high-end luxury vehicles continue to be popular targets for thieves, due in part to their desirability in illegal international markets. In many cases, stolen vehicles are exported to these markets by domestic and international criminal organizations, IBC says. The proceeds are then often used to finance drug trafficking, arms dealing and international terrorism.
IBC points to the positive impacts of federal and provincial investments in helping combat theft, but highlights the need for continued action. IBC has been calling for immediate action to stop stolen vehicles from being shipped overseas, to tackle fraudulent ‘re-VINing’ of vehicles and to prevent vehicles from being stolen in the first place through an update to Canada’s motor vehicle safety standards.
“Fighting auto theft requires a whole-of-society approach,” McGuinty says. “Now is not the time to take our collective foot off the accelerator in this fight.”
The value of insurance claims for auto theft hit a record $1.5 billion for the first time ever in 2023. That was up from about $1.2 billion in 2022 — also a record at the time.
Feature image by iStock.com/Flex Point Security
