The Toyota Highlander was the most stolen vehicle in 2023, dethroning the Honda CR-V as the nation's top stolen car for two years in a row, an insurance crime and fraud prevention group said on Tuesday.
The Highlander topped the list as criminals continue to target vehicles that maximize profit from illegal sales, said the non-profit Équité Association.
The Dodge Ram 1500 series, Lexus RX Series, Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4 were also on the list.
The top 10 most stolen vehicles in Canada share similarities. Most of them were 2019 or newer model years, have vulnerabilities that come from keyless ignitions or were without anti-theft devices that matched national standards.
Terri O'Brien, president and CEO of Équité Association, said auto theft can have devastating physical and financial effects on victims and a holistic plan is needed to address the problem.
"In order to sustainably address the auto theft crisis in Canada, solutions must evolve from focusing on the recovery of stolen vehicles to preventing vehicles from being stolen in the first place," she said in a statement.
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That starts with updating Canada's federal Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations to match the needs of modern vehicles, she added.
Équité also suggests using a layered approach to prevent theft, which includes anti-theft devices, vehicle immobilizers and tracking devices.
"Each layer provides protection and, in combination, diminishes the likelihood of vehicle theft," the agency said in the release.
Canada's private auto insurers paid out $1.5 billion in theft claims in 2023, a record high, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada. That year, vehicle thefts rose 50 per cent in Quebec and almost as much in Ontario.
Insurers have said the majority of vehicles are being exported through the busy Port of Montreal. Around 1.7 million containers moved through the port last year, including 70 per cent of Canada's legal vehicle exports, according to port authorities.
The federal government estimates 90,000 cars are stolen each year in Canada and many of the thefts involve connections to organized crime.
An action plan from the federal government unveiled in May expanded on existing efforts, following a February summit which brought several stakeholders to discuss potential solutions.
One of the efforts to combat organized crime was to report all stolen vehicles internationally through a database — notifying all countries they might have stolen vehicles there.
Other strategies call for shipment container inspections to expand further, including deploying scanning and detection technology beyond ports in places like rail yards. It also said Public Safety Canada will lead a working group involving all provincial and territorial governments.
A July report by Équité Association showed auto thefts were down 17 per cent during the first six months of 2024, compared with the same period last year.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 19, 2024.
