When you think of a car being stolen, most of you will think of thieves smashing the car window and hotwiring the vehicle. However, there are many more vehicle theft methods that all drivers should be wary of – they could all happen to you if not careful. By parking your car in the right places or using a car tracker from companies like Fit My Tracker, you could lower the risk of being a victim of the following theft methods.
Theft of An Unattended Vehicle
This is the most common form of vehicle theft. The theft of an unattended vehicle without using a key is when a thief takes a car that has been parked without consent. The thief will typically follow this up by hotwiring the vehicle or use other tampering methods so that they can get the engine running. Some thieves will even tow the vehicle away. Police have stated that half of the annual 20,000 car thefts are now performed through using advanced onboard diagnostic ports, key-cloning kits, and bypass immobiliser simulators.
Taking Without Owner’s Consent
This vehicle theft method is commonly known as TWOC. This is when a car is used by an unauthorised person short of theft. This term comes solely from the United Kingdom, as is the derivative “twocking”.
Opportunistic Theft
There are two different types of opportunistic theft. One of them is when a vehicle is removed by the thief whilst the keys are visible and the engine is idling. The other way opportunistic theft occurs is when a vehicle is offered for sale and the thief claims they are taking the car for a test drive but does not return the car. A “test drive” could also potentially give the thief an insight into where the keys for the car are kept, thus prompting the thief to come back and steal the vehicle at a later date.
Carjacking
Carjacking is when a vehicle is taken by force, or threat of force, against the owner of the vehicle or its operator. In the majority of locations, this is the most serious form of vehicle theft – this is because assault typically occurs and the method of taking over the vehicle is essentially a robbery, a much more serious method of theft. In many cases of carjacking, the passengers and operators can be forced from the vehicle while the thief is actually navigating the vehicle. In some other incidents of carjacking, the passengers or operators can even be held hostage within the vehicle.
Fraudulent Theft
Fraudulent theft is the illegal gaining of a vehicle from its seller via a fraudulent transfer or from funds that the seller will not end up receiving for themselves – examples of this are counterfeiting a cashier’s check or identity theft. Another way of performing fraudulent theft is by using a loan that was attained under false pretences. When stolen by this method, the thieves tend to sell on the cars, meaning that they can avoid being detected and can go on to steal many more vehicles in different jurisdictions. Near national borders, thieves often steal cars from rental companies. This is done in these locations as tracking devices can be less effective as the victims could lack jurisdiction in the countries that the thieves take the cars into.
Frosting
Frosting is a method that only occurs in the wintertime. When a driver is de-icing their car, thieves will tend to jump in the car and set off whilst the engine is still running.
Hanoi Burglary
Named after the first targeting method police created to tackle this crime, Hanoi burglary is when thieves steal a car as part of a house burglary. The intention of the house burglary is typically to steal the car keys themselves.
Joyriding
Joyriding is usually done for no other reason other than the thrill of driving a stolen car. This method is when a thief steals a car and merely drives around in the said vehicle for the sake of doing so.
