2012 – Germany: The Most Often Stolen Cars

Car theft declined in Germany in 2012 with auto thieves still preferring BMW, Audi and Porsche cars to Volkswagens and Mercedes-Benz.

Auto theft in Germany continued on a mostly downwards long-term trend. In 2012, 18,063 insured cars were stolen compared to 19,658 (-8%) a year ago. The risk of a car being stolen in Germany was 0.5 per 1,000 insured cars. In absolute numbers, Volkswagens were still the most often stolen cars but in relative numbers, BMW took over from Audi as the most desirable marque for car thieves. The single most popular car model per 1,000 insured was again a BMW, this year the BMW X6 Xdrive 4.0D led the charts.

Car Theft in Germany in 2012

In 2012, a total of 18,063 insured cars were stolen in Germany according to auto theft statistics released by the GDV – a German insurance association. This was a decline of 8% from the cars stolen in Germany 2011.

The 2012 auto theft figures confirm the long-term downward trend in car theft in Germany. In 1993 – the worst year for car theft in Germany – a total of 105,543 insured cars were stolen compared to 34,775 in 2002. The risk of a car being stolen per 1,000 insured cars in Germany was 0.5 in 2012 compared to 3.6 in 1993 and 1.1 in 2002.

The total claims for stolen cars were €242,4 million in 2012 compared to €800 million in 1993 and €300.9 million in 2002. The average claim per stolen car was €13,421 in 2012.

Surprisingly, the most popular cars with car thieves in Germany in 2012 were between four and seven years old (6,622 cars) compared to 4,847 for cars newer than three years.

The Most-Often Stolen Cars in Germany by Brand in 2012

The most-often stolen cars in Germany in absolute numbers in 2012 were as follows:

Not surprisingly, Volkswagen is leading the list, as VW has had more than a fifth of the German new car market for years. The rankings have been fairly constant from a year ago – Skoda and Toyota swopped positions with both seeing an increase in car theft. Seat slipped to behind Mazda and Honda while Nissan replaced Volvo as the last brand on the list.

The Most Popular Car Brands with Auto Thieves in Germany in 2012

The most-often stolen car brands in Germany per 1,000 cars insured were as follows in 2012:

BMW overtook Audi in 2012 to become the most popular marque per 1,000 car insured in Germany with auto thieves. Porsche maintained its third place with the risk per number of cars on the road notably smaller than in 2010 when Porsche was the clear favorite.

Volkswagen is clearly less popular with car thieves than with car buyers. Mercedes is also remarkably unpopular as stolen goods. Car thieves in German have fallen out of love with Opel even faster than the car-buying public in general.

The Most Popular Car Models with Thieves in Germany in 2012

The most popular car model with auto thieves in Germany per 1,000 cars of the specific model insured in 2012 were:

The most-often stolen car models per 1,000 cars insured in Germany in 2012 were again BMWs. The BMW X6 Xdrive 4.0 D took top spot while last year’s number one (X5 3.0D) slipped to sixth place and number two (X5 3.0 SD) slipped to fourth. The M3 “improved from sixth last year to second most-often stolen car in Germany in 2012. Half the top 16 most popular cars with car thieves in Germany in 2012 was BMW models.

Rather remarkably the list of cars popular with car thieves remained mostly consistent with a year ago. Of the ten most popular car models, all were on the list in at least a similar model last year as well. Noticeable newcomers in 2012 are the Honda CR-V and the Renault Laguna Grandtour – the latter never popular as a new car in Germany and probably mostly a statistical anomaly.

Porsche, which had three cars in the top-ten list in 2010, managed to stay off the list for the second year running.