Like the rest of the United Kingdom, London is experiencing a sharp increase in car theft. This rising tide is costing the economy an estimated £1.77 billion per year. While very surprising, this grim statistic demonstrates the growing sophistication of these organized crime groups. Specifically, they’ve sought to exploit the UK’s weaknesses, most notably its geographical isolation as an island nation. New research from the UK’s Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) underscores just how acute the crisis is. Even more alarming, they found that a stolen vehicle could be removed from the UK within just 24 hours.
Here, Elijah Glantz, research fellow for the Organised Crime and Policing Team at RUSI, explains why these findings expose a very worrying trend. In fact, he goes on to explain how vehicle theft today has become a high-value, low-risk business model for criminals. The report reveals how transnational organized crime groups have become more brazen and systematic. This new level of criminal organization now allows them to more easily ship these stolen cars to lucrative markets around the globe.
The UK’s police force has, for decades, focused their priorities on violent crime, which has resulted in a lack of resources dedicated to solving car theft cases. This lack of clarity and focus has exacerbated the problem, creating a thieves’ market where criminals feel free to operate with impunity. As Glantz notes, “The U.K. is obviously a global trading partner that has many, many interactions and trade relationships with the UAE and Africa and elsewhere, and there’s also a point of vulnerability in ports.” Port officials say they’re giving priority to inspecting imports over exports. This change forces new opportunities for criminal enterprises to flourish.
RUSI’s findings indicate that stolen vehicles are often “stolen, loaded and taken out of the UK within a day,” which underscores the swift actions of these organized crime groups. The report illustrates a disturbing trend with regard to car theft. It has changed from the lucky chance to in-depth organized crime while crossing many of these actors along a distinct supply chain.
The fiscal impact of this increase in auto theft goes far deeper than the loss of personal property. The ongoing national theft epidemic has caused an 82% spike in the average car insurance premium quote since 2021. Glantz elaborates on the broader economic impact, stating, “Vehicle theft now costs the U.K. economy about £1.77 billion [$2.43 billion] a year and has driven an 82% increase in car insurance premium quotes since 2021.” He points out how different factors are pushing costs higher, including the price of cars growing more and more expensive and insurance rates jumping.
Consequently, vehicle manufacturers are pouring billions into R&D for advanced security features. At the same time, crooks are changing up their game, leading to a never-ending cycle of innovation and theft in automotive design. Glantz notes, “The cost of vehicles has gone up, the cost of insurance has gone up. Vehicle manufacturers have poured an enormous amount of money into safeguarding their vehicles, so the cost of the crime has gone up, and the overall volume of crime has gone up.” He further states that “that £1.77 billion really is a very lower bound figure,” suggesting that the full economic toll could be much higher.
The report further connects the UK’s rise in car thefts to the expanding operations of international crime syndicates. Criminals immediately export stolen high-value vehicles to nearby established secondary markets, like the United Arab Emirates. These vehicles even make it to as far flung countries as Georgia in the Caucasus and Cyprus, where their left hand drive configuration gives them a premium resale market. In this context, the Democratic Republic of Congo becomes another important locus of these illicit trades.
Glantz cautions that changed consumer preference means we could see new target vehicles in the future. “What we really stress in the findings is the fact that it’s a certain make or model today, but if that gets engineered out [with technological advances to counter theft], or the demand shifts, it will be another tomorrow,” he asserts.