EXCLUSIVE: The Shocking Truth About South Africa’s Vehicle Crime Epidemic
A new report by Tracker, a leading vehicle tracking solutions company, has revealed that Gauteng is still the province that experiences the highest volume of vehicle crime in South Africa. But that’s not all – the data also shows that vehicle hijacking is on the rise, and that certain provinces are more prone to certain types of crime.
According to Tracker’s Vehicle Crime Index, which aggregates information from over 1.1 million subscriptions, hijackings still dominate, comprising 54% of all vehicle crime incidents, while theft accounts for 46%. But the real shocker is that business-owned vehicles are 45% more likely to experience vehicle crime compared to personal vehicles.
The data also reveals that certain provinces are more prone to certain types of crime. For example, the Eastern Cape has a higher propensity towards business vehicle crime, with 43% over-representation relative to Tracker’s business-owned vehicle subscriber base. Meanwhile, the Western Cape has a higher propensity towards hijacking, with 22% over-representation relative to Tracker’s subscriber base.
But what’s behind this surge in vehicle crime? According to Duma Ngcobo, chief operating officer of Tracker, it’s largely due to the economic situation in certain provinces. "Given the economic situation in the Eastern Cape, a province with significant unemployment, this is most likely opportunistic crime. In other words, the hijacking and looting of bounty on the back of trucks or in delivery vehicles, with a view to converting this into quick, easy, untraceable cash."
And it’s not just the Eastern Cape – crime is on the rise across the country. According to Tracker, 127,884 vehicles have been recovered, 20,958 arrests have been made, and 1,119 firearms have been recovered to date. But despite these efforts, the crime epidemic shows no signs of slowing down.
So what can be done to combat this growing problem? Ngcobo believes that technology will play a key role in the fight against vehicle crime. "Tracker uses various technologies, including AI, but predominantly Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) and Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, as well as radio frequency technology to track and recover vehicles hijacked or stolen from our customers."
But it’s not just about technology – it’s also about changing the way we think about vehicle crime. "Crime tends to shift across provinces over time, and there are different levels of crime based on the sophistication of the crime syndicates in the province," Ngcobo says. "At the moment, theft in Gauteng is greater than hijacking, most likely due to syndicates using keyless entry relay attacks to steal vehicles. More concerning is that crime along the N2 corridor towards Gqeberha has significantly increased."
The truth is, vehicle crime is a complex problem that requires a multifaceted approach. It’s not just about the technology – it’s about the people, the places, and the policies that enable this crime to thrive. It’s time for us to take a hard look at the root causes of this problem and work together to find a solution.
