Motor vehicle theft

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The rate of police-reported motor vehicle theft decreased 9% in 2007, the fourth consecutive annual decline. The rate peaked in 1996, and has been generally dropping since.

According to police and insurance companies, reasons for this decline include the increased use of electronic immobilizers in newer vehicles, as well as auto theft prevention programs that target youth.

Vehicle theft remains one of the most frequent offences committed in Canada according to police-reported data. In 2007, police reported just over 146,000 motor vehicle thefts, an average of about 400 per day. About half of the vehicles stolen were cars and one-third were trucks, vans or sport utility vehicles.

About two-thirds of all stolen vehicles were taken from public areas such as parking lots and streets, and one-third from private residences.

Motor vehicle theft is one of the least likely crimes to be solved by police. In 2007, 11% of thefts resulted in an accused person being identified by police. In contrast, 22% of all other property-related offences were solved.

There were approximately 16,000 persons accused of vehicle theft in 2007. Teenagers aged 15 to 18, who accounted for 3 in every 10 solved vehicle thefts, had the highest vehicle theft rate of any age group.

In 2007, about 4 in 10 stolen vehicles had not been recovered by police. The proportion of stolen vehicles not recovered is used by experts as a proxy measure to indicate the involvement of organized theft rings that steal vehicles for resale or for parts.

Vehicles that are recovered have generally been used either for "joy-riding" or as a temporary means of transportation used to commit other crimes.

Rates of vehicle theft were higher in the West. Manitoba continues to report the highest rate of vehicle theft in the country, despite a 10% decline from 2006. Manitoba's rate in 2007 was almost double that of the next highest province, Alberta.

Among major metropolitan areas, the highest rates of vehicle theft were in Western Canada. Winnipeg reported the highest, followed by Abbotsford, Edmonton, Regina, Calgary, Vancouver and Saskatoon.

Winnipeg's rate of vehicle theft in 2007 was 25% higher than a decade ago, despite declines in two of the previous three years. Edmonton and St. John's reported increases of over 50% over the past 10 years, although the rate in St. John's remained among the lowest in the country.

Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 3302.

The Juristat article "Motor vehicle theft in Canada, 2007," Vol. 28, no. 10 (85-002-XWE, free), is now available. From the Publications module of our website, under All subjects, choose Crime and justice, then Juristat.

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Information and Client Services (toll-free 1-800-387-2231; 613-951-9023), Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.

Table 1
Police-reported motor vehicle thefts, by census metropolitan area