Hoppers Crossing is Wyndham’s car theft hot- spot, with more vehicles stolen there than in any of the city’s other suburbs.
New data released by the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council (NMVTRC) shows 441 cars were stolen in Hoppers Crossing between 2010 and 2013.
In Werribee, 407 cars were taken, while 177 went missing from Tarneit.
The safest suburb was Little River, with just six cars stolen.
NMVTRC executive director Ray Carroll said thieves were targeting cars such as late ’90s Holden Commodores, Ford Falcons and Nissan Pulsars, which didn’t have immobilisers fitted when new.
“Non-immobilised cars have twice the theft rate of immobilised cars,” he said. “The best protection for an older non-immobolised car is to fit an after-market electronic immobiliser.”
Mr Carroll said the statistics also showed a rise in cars being taken from outside homes, although many of Wyndham’s 1361 thefts from 2010-13 were because of owner complacency.
“Many cars are stolen by opportunists who capitalise on a moment of inattention or carelessness by motorists,” he said.
“This includes people who leave their cars running in the driveway of their house while they [go inside] to collect something, or leaving keys in the ignition while they pop into a shop or pay for petrol.”
As reported by Star Weekly, Wyndham police have set up a team to tackle the city’s car theft problem.
Sergeant Ben Jarman urged drivers to secure their cars to stop opportunistic thieves.
“This includes parking off-street, possibly in a garage or, if you have to park on the street, park in well-lit areas,” he said.
“Don’t leave your car unlocked, make sure the windows are closed and remove all valuables from sight.”
