Some 15,000 cars were stolen in Israel during 2015, according to Pointer, which provides vehicle location services and systems for fleet management. The figures, which look at the theft ratio for cars with insurance-mandated GPS devices, show a 16% rise from last year. Pointer data showed 70% of the thefts involved physically breaking in and switching the car’s computer.
The figures further show a 12% increase in thefts of keys from clients’ homes making up 25% of all thefts. Only 5% of vehicles were stolen in a highway robbery and with the vehicle either on or towed from its parking place.
In a geographic breakdown, the Dan metropolitan area (which includes Tel Aviv) led the list with 25% of thefts, an 8% drop from the previous year; the Sharon area accounted for 18%, compared to 17% in 2014; Jerusalem had 12% of the thefts, a 14% drop from 2014; northern Israel had 14% of the thefts, like the previous year; 20% were stolen in the Shfela, a 42% increase from the previous year; and southern Israel was the site of 11% of the thefts, an 8% decrease.
Tel Aviv led the list of cities, with 10% of the vehicles stolen in its bounds, followed by Jerusalem with 6%. Petah Tikvah came in third with 3.5%.
A breakdown by vehicle type revealed private vehicles accounted for 44% of thefts, a 2% increase from the previous year; commercial vehicles slotted in second with 23%, a 3% increase; SUVs accounted for 7%, a 10% drop; pickup trucks 6.5%, a 16% increase from the previous year; and trucks, which accounted for 17% of thefts, a 43% decrease.
According to the National Unit for Locating Stolen Vehicles in the Israel Police, the most stolen vehicle in Israel is a SanYang Motors scooter or other mopeds. Pointer’s data, however, is based on the thefts of more expensive vehicles, which leasing companies choose to safeguard to decrease thefts of their fleet vehicles.
Pointer said most vehicles are stolen in one of two ways: stealing the keys from the client’s home, when there is a direct route between the home and the parked vehicle; and stealing by an authorized user usually by preparing a copy of the key given from the owner, whether to a friend, a garage, a parking structure, or a carwash.
In some incidents, the company discovered that renters copied keys to the vehicle and returned it in order to steal it from the next client. In these cases, the vehicle is driven to the Palestinian Authority when it is “legally” neutralized using the keys, with the security system dismantled in Palestinian territory.
Pointer Israel CEO Ilan Goldstein said, “The increase in thefts initiated by stealing the key from a client’s home to a quarter of all thefts is disturbing. Customers need to understand that given the overall security situation in Israel, especially recently, they must be cautious.”
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 13, 2016
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