Ford Transit the most stolen vehicle in the UK

According to latest figures from NaVCIS (National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service), the Ford Transit was the most frequently stolen vehicle in the UK in 2015. In further bad news for Transit owners, only one third of stolen Ford Transits are ever recovered and returned to their owners, compared to a national average of 55% of cars and 38% of light goods vehicles.

According to the report, of the 11,000 Ford vehicles reported stolen, almost half of those were Transit vans. The West Midlands accounts for 10% of all Ford Transit thefts while in Yorkshire, the total value of all Ford Transit vans stolen in 2015 was in excess of £7.5million.

The Mercedes Sprinter was the second most commonly stolen vehicle with thefts of models manufactured between 2013 and 2015 particularly high. In comparison, Ford Transit vans manufactured between 2006 and 2011 are most frequently stolen, suggesting poor security in older models make them vulnerable. Vehicles are often stolen without keys and once in a ‘safe’ location, thieves break down the vehicles for component parts to be sold on.

In response to the news, stolen vehicle recovery (SVR) expert, TRACKER is urging owners of vans to ensure their vehicles are better protected.

TRACKER’s SVR systems work like an electronic homing device. A covert transmitter is hidden in one of several dozen places around the vehicle, and there is no visible aerial, so the thief won’t even know it’s there.

TRACKER combines GSM, GPS and VHF technology, and its use of VHF technology makes it resilient to ‘jamming’.   Jamming devices, readily available on the internet, are increasingly being used by thieves to disrupt GPS/GSM signals so that the police are unable to track and locate stolen vans fitted with SVR devises that rely on GPS alone.