Vehicle Crime
Car Theft Index 2003
This document is published for archival/historical purposes. It will not be updated.
Information from The Car Theft Index 2003 is now in public circulation. Produced by the Home Office for owners of car vehicles, The Car Theft Index indicates which makes and models of car are most at risk of being stolen in England, Scotland and Wales. The index does not attempt to highlight regional trends. It is based on 2002 theft data taken from the Police National Computer (PNC), and on information provided by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) on the number of cars on the road.
Title: The Car Theft Index 2003
Author: The Home Office
Number of pages: 52
Date published: December 2003
The index puts all cars into one of three classifications:
| Red | These indicators show cars in the band of more than 17 cars stolen in every 1,000 on the road, and at least 4 times more at risk of theft than the lowest risk cars. |
Amber | This group has between 4 and 17 cars in every 1000 on the road stolen. | |
Green | The lesser risk green category has less than 4 cars in every 1000 on the road stolen. |
Not all models of car are included in the Index. Only those with sufficient numbers on the road to provide statistically reliable results are shown.
Key Findings
The results incorporate the 31% vehicle related theft fall since 1997, according to the British Crime Survey 2002/03. The everyday risk of having your vehicle stolen is now very low about once every 70 years.
In relation to the chart, the Car Theft Index findings show that:
older cars (those aged 12-14 years old) are at the highest risk of being stolen
cars aged between 11-15 year account for 41% of all cars stolen
new cars are at least risk of being stolen – those aged 0-3 years old account for only 13% of stolen car
sophisticated security measures now fitted as standard to new cars mean some criminals are turning to other methods to steal vehicles (for example taking the key )
theft from a vehicle is the largest category of vehicle theft according to the British Crime Survey 2002/03, accounting for 60% of all vehicle-related theft.
the average value of possessions stolen from vehicles is estimated at £80, while the average cost of a stolen vehicle is £900.
regardless of the monetary loss victims suffer distress, inconvenience, and an increased fear of crime.
the British Crime Survey also found that around 40% of vehicle crimes occur on the street outside the home.
in 2002, 314,774 cars were stolen in England, Scotland and Wales. This is 26,900 fewer thefts than in 2001.
Insurance groups
The risk of theft in this Index will not necessarily match the insurance rating for a given car as the insurance rating also takes a vehicle's accident repair costs into account. Individual insurance premiums also depend upon other factors such as a driver's history and the area they live in.
The insurance industry have turned the assessments that give a car its insurance group into a 5-star rating for that car's ability to prevent criminals stealing it or stealing from it.
The New Car Security Ratings (NCSR) can be found at www.ncsr.co.uk for many makes and models of car and is worth looking at in conjunction with The Car Theft Index. The Index also provides safety tips for motorists as well as a comprehensive analysis of safety products that can prevent vehicle crime and the risk of being a crime victim.
Download: The Car Theft Index 2003 
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Last update: Wednesday, August 27, 2008