Survey of Police Officers Finds Drivers Need to Better Protect Their Vehicles From Theft

Police Cite Identity Theft and Mini Chop Shops as Emerging Trends in Vehicle Theft

WESTWOOD, Mass., July 26 -- With the highest auto theft months of July and August upon us, the results of a survey announced today reveal that law enforcement professionals around the country believe Americans need to do more to protect their vehicles from theft. According to a robust sampling of law enforcement professionals, a full 81 percent believe that car owners are not taking the right steps to protect their vehicles from theft. The survey also revealed that nearly 90 percent believe owners need to better protect their vehicles from today's sophisticated thieves by exercising more common sense, using more theft deterrents and using stolen vehicle recovery systems.

The survey was sponsored by LoJack Corporation as part of the company's ongoing education program on vehicle theft protection. The questionnaire was completed by 400 law enforcement officers throughout the country between May and July 2005.

When asked the most common mistake people make that leaves their vehicles vulnerable to theft, 39 percent said the primary problem is leaving keys inside the car. A full 37 percent said that the most common mistake is leaving the vehicle unlocked and nearly 20 percent indicated that the problem is drivers leaving their vehicles running.

  Survey Reveals Emerging Theft Trends:
  Identity Theft Creeps into Vehicle Theft; Mini Chop Shops the Latest

When asked to volunteer new trends police have observed related to vehicle theft, the most common response was related to fraud and identity theft. More than 14 percent cited that this trend was on the rise, noting the following types of fraud:

  * Identity theft - thieves use a false identity to purchase or lease a
    vehicle

  * Fraud to secure additional set of keys - thieves target a specific
    vehicle, pose as the owner and get an extra set of keys from the
    manufacturer to steal the targeted vehicle

  * Stealing a vehicle to commit additional acts of identity theft - thieves
    steal a vehicle and ransack it to find personal information that is used
    for identity theft crimes

  * Insurance fraud - owner claims car/truck is stolen or dumps vehicle
    somewhere to collect insurance fraudulently

"Identity theft is a growing nationwide problem that has found its way into crimes involving vehicle theft," said Patrick Clancy, VP Law Enforcement, LoJack Corporation. "Unfortunately, it is one of the many clever tactics today's sophisticated thieves employ to get exactly what they want. That's why it is more important than ever that people are vigilant about protecting their vehicles in order to help safeguard their identity."

For the same question, the second most common response was about the rise in "mini chop shops" that are hidden in a thief's garage or back yard. By operating on a small scale and effectively hiding in a residential area, thieves hope to escape detection by police.

"These small chop shops hidden in residences are often hard to locate," Clancy added. "Through the use of LoJack tracking technology, police can often hone in on the location of these operations to recover stolen vehicles and arrest the thieves."

How the Survey Was Conducted

The survey involved a total of 400 law enforcement professionals, who completed a questionnaire that was distributed by LoJack Corporation's staff of Law Enforcement Liaisons, who support police in the fight against auto theft. The survey was conducted from May through July 2005.

For more information on how to protect vehicles from theft, visit LoJack's Knowledge Center for Vehicle Security at www.lojack.com and click on the "Get the Facts on Vehicle Theft" button.

About LoJack Corporation

LoJack Corporation, the premier worldwide marketer of wireless tracking and recovery systems for valuable mobile assets, is the undisputed leader in global stolen vehicle recovery. Its Stolen Vehicle Recovery System delivers a better than 90% success rate and has helped recover more than $3 billion in global assets. The system is uniquely integrated into law enforcement agencies in the United States that use LoJack's in-vehicle tracking equipment to recover stolen assets, including cars, trucks, commercial vehicles, construction equipment and motorcycles. Today LoJack operates in 22 states and the District of Columbia, representing areas of the country with the greatest population density, and highest number of new vehicle sales and incidence of vehicle theft. In addition, LoJack technology is utilized by law enforcement and security organizations in more than 25 countries throughout Europe, Africa, Latin America and Asia.