AMI Insurance data revealed the Mazda Demio as New Zealand’s most stolen car, accounting for 10% of 12,000 claims for vehicle theft received by the insurer over the past three years despite making up only 1.5% of the country’s vehicle fleet.
The Demio was the subject of 1,176 claims over that period, while the second most stolen car – the Mazda Atenza or Mazda 6 – was the subject of 774 claims.
Completing New Zealand’s most-stolen cars list are the Nissan Tiida (700 claims), Subaru Legacy (458 claims), and Mazda Familia (456 claims), followed by the Subaru Impreza (387), Toyota Hilux (384), Ford Courier (264), Subaru Forester (237), and Honda Civic (187).
Regionally, Auckland made the highest number of claims for vehicle thefts (39%), almost double the numbers in runner-up Canterbury, despite only holding 31% of the country’s fleet.
The most frequently stolen vehicle in Auckland was the Toyota Hilux.
AMI’s executive general manager for claims, Wayne Tippet, said the data served as a reminder to take security precautions and ensure that insurance details are up to date – especially for owners of car models more likely to be stolen.
“Our claims data shows that many cars are parked out on the street or outside someone else’s property for the night when they are stolen,” Tippet said. “Where possible, park down a driveway or inside a garage, and double-check your car is locked. If there isn’t any off-street parking available, try to park your car in a well-lit area, like under a streetlamp.”
Tippet also recommended that vehicle owners check their car for a factory-fitted immobiliser or whether they can install other preventive security measures such as steering wheel locks.
Despite its high rate of theft, the Mazda Demio was also the car most likely to be recovered. Over the past three years, 94% of stolen Demio cars were recovered.
The Toyota Hilux had the lowest rates of recovery at 30%, followed by the Ford Courier at 47%.
