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Automobile theft - What's at stake
A complex problem
In Québec, in 2006, more than 38,800 vehicles were stolen, which is 1 vehicle every 14 minutes. In order to compensate the owners of stolen vehicles, insurers paid out more than approximately $300 million in 2006.
Vehicle theft occurs throughout Canada where a total of 160,000 vehicles were stolen in 2006. Although the theft of motorized vehicles affects the entire country, the problem and its socioeconomic consequences vary from one province to the next.
In Western Canada, namely Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan, most thefts are opportunistic in nature. This type of theft is referred to as "joyriding." An opportunistic theft is committed for reasons other than economic ones, namely for pleasure, as a result of a dare or in order to obtain a vehicle needed to commit a crime. Most of these thefts are committed by young people.
Québec: the hub of organized theft rings
In the case of Ontario, British Columbia and Québec, automobile theft is very different. According to Statistics Canada, in 2006, 38,400 vehicles were stolen in Ontario, 38,800 in Québec and approximately 30,000 in British Columbia.
Furthermore, the thefts were not committed for the same reasons as in the western part of the country. Automobile theft in Québec and Ontario is linked to the presence of organized theft rings. This observation is based on the recovery rate of stolen vehicles in these regions. The recovery rate for vehicles stolen in the greater Toronto area, in 2002, was 75%. For Montréal, the situation is even more disturbing since the percentage of vehicles that were stolen and then found within the territory of Montréal was only 56%.