Greater Manchester has moved up Tracker’s Top Ten Most Stolen and Recovered Vehicles league table from seventh place in 2016 to third place last year.
Essex is in second place for the second year in a row.
Tracker’s head of police liaison Andy Barrs (pictured) said: “While London remains the theft and recovery hot spot for the sixth year running, the Capital isn’t the only place where car owners need to be vigilant.
"Cambridgeshire, Sussex and Nottinghamshire all entered the top 10 regions for the first time this year, as thieves find fresh pickings in different areas.”
The most popular car for thieves in London was the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, which was the ninth best-selling car in 2016 and 2017 and continues to hold this position in 2018.
In Essex it was the BMW X5 that was most commonly stolen and recovered in 2017 and in Greater Manchester it was the Range Rover Sport.
Barrs said: “80% of all vehicles stolen and recovered by Tracker in 2017 were stolen without using the owner’s keys, quite a significant increase from the 66% stolen by this means in 2016.
"Of course, a Tracker device won’t prevent your vehicle from being stolen, but if it is, it will significantly increase the chances of the vehicle being recovered quickly and returned by the police.”
The company has reported a 5% year-on-year increase in vehicle thefts and recoveries in 2017, with the total value of vehicles stolen recovered exceeding 12.5 million. There has been an overall 30% increase in the number of stolen vehicles recovered by Tracker since 2014.
Top ten regions where cars are stolen and recovered
J - 25/09/2018 20:48
A key method used by criminals to steal high end vehicles involves blocking the signal from a key fob when the owner attempts to remotely lock the car. This leaves the car unlocked. A thief approaches later and downloads the cars electronic security codes on to a blank key. This only takes a few seconds. The easiest ways to restrict the opportunity for thieves is to either lock the car by using the fob at close range and then physically checking the door or if the car is fully keyless to press the locking point on the door handle instead of using the fob. Finally the old methods of steering wheel locks and putting cars in garages or behind locked gates should be a good deterrent.