Car theft 2022: top 30 most popular passenger cars among car thieves

Auto theft 2022

“At 5,973 units, by the way, the number of stolen passenger cars is still lower than in 2019, the year before corona broke out. Indeed, 7,107 vehicles were stolen then,” states Vehicle Crime Insurance Bureau Foundation based on auto theft 2022 data from the National Intelligence and Expertise Center for Vehicle Crime (LIV).

Toyota picks up position Volkswagen

The most popular car brands among car thieves are Toyota and Volkswagen. Toyota even took Volkswagen’s place as the most stolen brand in 2022. Of the Toyota brand, 1,036 cars were stolen. With this, Toyota shows the largest theft increase of all brands at 83% compared to 2021. But which models were the most popular? We list them in a top 30.

Car theft 2022: top 30 most stolen passenger cars

1. Toyota RAV4 – 465
2. Volkswagen Polo – 297
3. Volkswagen Golf – 290
4. Fiat 500 – 174
5. Toyota C-HR – 118
6. Ford Focus – 105
7. BMW 3 Series – 104
8. Renault Clio – 101
9. Toyota Aygo – 93
10. Peugeot 3008 – 93
11. Renault Megane – 91
12. Opel Corsa – 85
13. Audi A1 – 83
14. Renault Captur – 82
15. Ford Fiesta – 80
16. Mercedes-Benz A-Class – 72
17. BMW 5 Series – 67
18. Mercedes-Benz C-Class – 64
19. Audi A3 – 60
20. Peugeot 208 – 58
21. Peugeot 108 – 54
22. Opel Astra – 54
23. Toyota Corolla – 53
24. Peugeot 5008 – 47
25. BMW 1 Series – 46
26. Peugeot 206 – 45
27. Volkswagen Up – 45
28. Toyota Prius – 44
29. Audi A4 – 41
30. Ford Ka – 37

Auto theft 2022: Top 10 stolen passenger vehicles by make

1. Toyota – 1,036
2. Volkswagen – 793
3. Peugeot – 452
4. Renault – 409
5. Audi – 339
6. Ford – 308
7. BMW – 283
8. Mercedes-Benz – 282
9. Opel – 243
10. Fiat – 239

RAV4 and Auris

The risk of theft is highest in the following ten cars. Like last year, the trend is visible that SUVs in particular are in demand. Specifically the RAV4 but also notable is the Auris, which has seen unprecedented increases in 2022 compared to 2021. The Toyota Auris is mainly stolen for its parts: in fact, of the 193 vehicles stolen, 73% were recovered without catalytic converters. 

• Toyota RAV4 – theft risk 1 in 78
• Audi S4 – theft risk 1 in 89
• Alfa Romeo Stelvio – theft risk 1 in 140
• Audi S5 – theft risk 1 in 149
• Lexus RX450h – theft risk 1 in 154
• Toyota C-HR – theft risk 1 in 240
• Mazda CX-5 – theft risk 1 in 246
• Toyota Auris – theft risk 1 in 300
• Peugeot 3008 – theft risk 1 in 383
• Peugeot 5008 – theft risk 1 in 385

Understanding auto theft 2022

The theft of electric/hybrid vehicles increased 74% to 1,002 units. This increase is almost entirely due to Toyota, with 771 units. Passenger cars 3, 4 and 5 years old are stolen the most, accounting for 27% of thefts. Theft of passenger cars aged 0 to 3 years decreased 8% by 2022. Passenger cars aged 20 years and older show a striking 18% increase in theft. The recovery rate for passenger cars remained the same as in 2021 at 45%. In the first 24 hours the probability of retrieval is highest at 16%, after one month it is only 7.6%.

In conversation with National Intelligence and Expertise Center Vehicle Crime (LIV)

Rudi Welling, manager at LIV, says the following: “Of the 5,973 passenger car thefts in 2022, about 1,100 reports involved embezzlement. These include vehicles that have been borrowed, rented, leased – corporate or private – but not returned to their rightful owners.”

The figures show a steady increase since 2016 when there were only 400 reports of embezzlement. Embezzlement is a special form of theft, and for actual theft detection, a number of specific conditions must be met.

Responsibility

“Combating vehicle theft is a shared responsibility of manufacturers, insurers and owners alike. Recent U.S. research shows that several brands are easy to hack. So there is an important initial role for manufacturers to better protect their vehicles from cybercrime,” Welling adds.

“In theft protection, the focus tends to be on young vehicles, but there are definitely gains to be made in securing older vehicles. These often lack any security at all and give criminals free rein. Prevention remains the most important tool against thefts. A security system with the CCV Vehicle Security Hallmark for young, but certainly also for older and historical vehicles remains our first recommendation.”

Other theft rates

Theft of light commercial vehicles increased 23% to 1,394 units. Motorcycles (1,694 units) and mopeds and motorcycles (12,590 units) showed increases of 13% and 27%, respectively. A total of 18,562 registered vehicles were stolen, of which 39% were recovered. Mercedes-Benz, Peugeot and Renault are the notable risers in light commercial vehicles. Among heavy commercial vehicles (+26%), MAN is a notable newcomer with 8 vehicles stolen.