In Toronto alone, we have witnessed a staggering 61.4% increase in auto thefts in 2022, and the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) has warned dealerships to take extra precautions. How are criminals targeting auto dealerships, and how can you take precautions against this rising threat?
How prevalent is vehicle theft?
The rise in auto dealership theft has been well-documented in recent years. Criminals are increasingly targeting auto dealerships due to the high value of cars and the ease of selling stolen cars overseas. As a result, the OPP has warned auto dealerships and auto shops to take precautions and safeguard their vehicles and keys(1).
How are criminals targeting automotive dealerships?
Last month, criminals targeted an auto dealership in Guelph, Ontario and two high-end muscle cars worth a staggering $260,000 were stolen. After reviewing video surveillance, it was discovered that two suspects arrived at the dealership at 10:30 PM on Saturday October 8th, smashing the glass doors, disabling the interior cameras, and leaving the back door unlocked. The criminals returned on Monday at 1:15 AM to sneak in the unlocked backdoor and steal the vehicles. In total, the Guelph dealership not only has to contend with $260,000 worth of goods stolen but also the $25,000 to replace the destroyed doors and missing equipment. (3)
Another example happened early this year at an auto dealer from Langley, BC. In this incident, seven vehicles and keys of roughly 300 vehicles were stolen, totaling between $600,000 and $700,000. The dealership will need to account for the stolen goods as well as the emotional damage. In the owner’s words: “It’s gut-wrenching… We are here at the dealership more than at home, so when somebody comes into your private space, it’s very disturbing. (The suspects) went from department to department knowing where certain keys were(4).“
Based on recent cases, criminals may already know key locations for theft and are coming late at night to break and enter through doors and windows. Although these dealerships had video surveillance, because the feeds were not live monitored, ownership and law enforcement only found out about the crime when the dealership opened the following business day.
How do we protect your dealership from vehicle theft?
For auto dealership security, our goal is to prevent crime before it happens: by alerting the would-be criminal that they’re being watched, recorded, and communicated with – in real time. For deterrence measures, we utilize our integrated live communications speakers and LED strobe lights. For the vast majority of instances, there is no need for Police involvement, as our security systems and services have a 98% crime deterrence rate. However, if a theft does occur and Police are unable to apprehend the suspects at the scene, the high resolution footage from our stationary cameras & Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) cameras can be used to identify the criminals and assist in their capture.
While it is nearly impossible to eliminate the risk of auto theft, taking extra precautions by ramping up your security with cameras, alarm sensors, and live monitoring will help you mitigate incidents. Live operators at our UL Certified Monitoring Center diligently monitor your cameras between 6PM to 6AM each weekday, and 24 hours over weekends. Each of our innovative video security units has independent Cellular LTE connections, which provides more robust protection against vandalism attacks on surveillance equipment.
For assets & locations that require an additional layer of protection, syncroDetect is our wireless alarm system that detects motion and intrusion attempts to vulnerable areas, including buildings, storage areas, tool lockers, windows, and doors. An alert will instantly be sent to our monitoring facility in instances of human motion, or when a door or window is opened, and our operators will immediately contact law enforcement to alert them of the crime-in-progress.
Once the threat has been mitigated, our Monitoring Team will compile all of the collected information into a time stamped log report, which recalls the specific details that took place during the incident. This report is made available to you through email/SMS message, and within our security information reporting platform, syncroReports. This platform is your access point to security logs, live camera feeds, and also provides the ability to control your sites’ PTZ security cameras.
In order to ensure the protection of your auto dealerships, it is critical that you deploy a comprehensive security strategy. Our pairing of proactive Remote Video Monitoring and Wireless Intrusions Alarms is a highly effective solution proven to safeguard your property, and the assets within it.
Resources:
- OPP investigating a wave of thefts from auto dealerships and shops across Elgin and Middlesex Counties, St. Thomas Today, August 31, 2022
- “TPS Crime Statistics – Major Crime Indicators”, Toronto Police Service, July 20, 2022
- “Two muscle cars valued at $260,000 stolen from Guelph dealership” GuelphToday, October 12, 2022
- “Langley, B.C. auto dealer suffers ‘gut-wrenching’ theft of cars, keys”, Elizabeth McSheffrey, Global News, January 3rd, 2022