Owners of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) beware — your car may be on the list of the 10 most stolen vehicles in Ontario.
The list was compiled by Équité Association, an insurance crime and fraud prevention group, which releases an annual report of most stolen cars in Canada.
In Ontario, seven out of 10 vehicles on the list are SUVs, with two trucks and one car making the cut. The report notes that nearly all of the most-stolen vehicles nationwide are newer models, manufactured in 2019 or later, and come with vulnerabilities like keyless ignitions.
Here are the top 10 most stolen vehicles in Ontario by number of thefts:
- Lexus RX series (2022 model), with 2,852 thefts
- Toyota Highlander (2022 model), with 2,838 thefts
- Dodge Ram 1500 Series (2022 model), with 1,977 thefts
- Honda CR-V (2020 model), with 1,488 thefts
- Land Rover Range Rover Series (2020 model), with 1,411 thefts
- Chevrolet/GMC Suburban/Yukon/Tahoe Series (2023 models), with 1,136 thefts
- Jeep Wrangler (2023 model), with 1,106 thefts
- Toyota RAV4 (2021 model), with 999 thefts
- Honda Civic (2019 model), with 737 thefts
- Ford F150 Series (2022 model), with 557 thefts
The Land Rover Ranger Rover Series nabbed the top spot for highest theft rate. A staggering 6.8 per cent of these vehicles insured in Ontario were stolen in 2023.
Next comes the Lexus RX Series, of which 4.8 per cent of insured vehicles were reported stolen. The Toyota Highlander clinched third place with a theft rate of 4.5 per cent.
Nationwide, the 2021 Toyota Highlander model was the most stolen vehicle. Over 3,400 of these SUVs were snatched across Canada.
The list comes as Toronto reports record-breaking rates of auto theft. In 2023, over 12,300 vehicles were stolen, according to data from the Toronto Police Service, up 25 per cent from the year prior when over 9,800 vehicles were pinched.
Auto thefts have been steadily on the rise since 2015, with the steepest increase occurring in 2022 when reports of stolen vehicles rose by 48 per cent compared to the year prior.
Terri O’Brien, the president and CEO of Équité Association said in a statement that auto theft “can have a devastating physical and financial impact for victims.”
“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.
O’Brien is calling on the federal government to reform “outdated” safety regulations for vehicles and require cars to come equipped with more theft deterrent measures.
