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With auto theft rates in Manitoba dropping in recent years, Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) believes they could fall even further – if drivers exercised more common sense.
MPI media relations coordinator Brian Smiley said that automobiles continue to be stolen at a disproportionate rate due to their owners leaving their cars unattended and running.
“There were about 3,200 vehicle thefts last year in Manitoba,” he told Global News Radio. “Ninety per cent (90%) of those vehicle thefts involved the use of keys. Vehicles all have immobilizers in them now, but the immobilizers are only effective if the keys are in the hands of the owner.”
Smiley warned that auto thefts can do more damage than to just the car owner – very often, the stolen vehicles get involved in dangerous police car chases.
“That’s extremely dangerous, and potentially can kill innocent people, and it involves vehicles that have been left running by their owners and they were stolen,” he remarked. “These are preventable crimes and they continue to exist.”
The MPI spokesperson also noted that thefts can also severely affect the insurance rates of all drivers, especially if the stolen automobiles are eventually written off.
“If we can keep those auto theft numbers down, and not be writing vehicles off, that can keep our rates down.”
Back when Manitoba’s capital of Winnipeg was known as the “auto theft capital of Canada,” some 24 to 30 vehicles were being stolen on average every day.
“We’ve certainly reduced those numbers, but the auto theft we’re seeing now is completely preventable if the owners took better care of their keys,” Smiley commented.
