By Sacha Walters and Jonique Gaynor, Staff Reporters
Left: A stolen car that was found during a police operation at Deanery Drive, earlier this year. - Ricardo Makyn. Right: Constable Richard Dayes, of the Wakefield police, examines a burnt out 2002 Toyota Corolla. - Claudine Housen
If you drive a white Toyota Corolla, your car is number one on the car jacker's most wanted list.
A total of 193 Toyota Corollas was stolen between January 1 and July 6 this year, according to figures from the Stolen Motor Vehicle Unit (SMVU). White cars are the most commonly stolen with 151 white vehicles being stolen in the same period.
Second to Toyota Corollas are Honda motor cars. Thirty-four of these were stolen during the said period, two more than the 32 Nissan motor vehicles stolen over the same period. The safest models may well be Mitsubishi, Suzuki and Daewoo, with theft rates of 6, 3 and 1 respectively.
In terms of colours, grey is the second color of choice, after white. Thirty six grey cars were stolen during the period, while 15 green and 14 silver cars vanished. Black, blue and red cars are almost equally as common with 9, 8 and 6 being stolen respectively. Orange and gold apparently do not have much appeal as only one of each color was stolen.
Kibwe McGann, operating manager at Pinky's Pit Stop, a garage, says this is due to the fact that Corollas are in high demand and are one of the cheapest cars on the market.
Mini buses
He said Toyota Hiace mini buses are also very popular and that cars with high crash rates also tend to be commonly stolen.
Once a car is written off by an insurance company and dumped, people will purchase the vehicle and put the chassis and engine numbers on a stolen vehicle. This is then sold for much more than the buying price. McGann said the Internet has made it easy for people to purchase machinery that can make chassis and engine numbers. He said these sites require no form of identification or proof of authorisation.
George Johnson is one of many car owners who have suffered at the hands of thieves. Johnson told the STAR that he drove a Toyota Corolla he rented to a funeral in Portmore. "Dem tief di car March 29 last year, right inna di middle of di day. Mi go di funeral and when mi come out all mi see a space and everybody seh dem nuh see nuttin. Mi go in 11 o'clock and by mi come out 1 0' clock it gone."
Johnson admits that he once owned a Corolla but says he installed a kill switch and alarm, before eventually selling it. He added also that he would never buy another because "dem too easy fi tief."
Car dealer Ray Rose, owner of Raymar's Automotive located in the Corporate Area, also knows how 'eye-catching' Corollas are. He says Corollas and Honda Civics "are the fastest stolen cars around" and says this is because they are so common. "When cars get too common, they are harder to find when stolen. Corollas are very durable, it's easy to get parts for them and they are commonly sold."
Rose says he and other dealers often install alarms and kill switches in cars that value over a million dollars and added that he usually encourages persons to install alarms. He added however that the sale of these cars was not affected by the theft rate as they are models people know and trust.
Car thieves have also devised unique ways of snatching vehicles.
Detective Inspector Judith Dixon from the SMVU, said thieves bring locksmiths, mechanics or electricians to pick locks and disengage alarms and 'kill switches'. She said there have been instances where thieves replaced a steering wheel that has a lock, with a new one , just to be able to steal it.
Large events
Detective Dixon also said people have to be careful especially when they leave their cars parked for extended periods and at large events.
She said people should remember that security devices do not totally prevent thieves from taking cars, it simply lessens the time it takes for a vehicle to be stolen. She also said car owners must be careful when leaving their keys as they can easily be duplicated.
She encourages individuals to contact the Stolen Motor Vehicle Unit to check out a car before purchasing it to make certain that it is not stolen.
According to Dorothy Russell Clark, the underwriting manager for insurance company BCIC Ltd, approximately $7.5 million is paid out per month in stolen vehicle claims. She also concurred that Toyota Corolla is the most commonly stolen car. This, she says, is followed by Nissan Sunny, Honda Civic and Honda CRV.
She added however that this factor does not affect the amount a customer pays for insurance. "There is no premium differential at this point in time," she said.
Customers insuring a private car however, must bear a 5 'percent policy excess' for all makes. This means 5 per cent is subtracted from the amount the car was insured for and the insurance company retains this amount if the car is stolen. She mentioned however that this may be increased in the future for models that have high theft risks. But this cannot be done until they establish an appropriate data base which can accurately determine if it is necessary.
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