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Police step up illegal ‘chop shop’ shut-downs in 2023

Richard Aucock, Contributor
Wed, 19 Jun 2024

The closure of so-called ‘chop-shops’, which strip and dismantle stolen cars, accelerated by more than 70% last year, thanks to efforts by the police and stolen vehicle recovery firm Tracker.

In 2023, 55 illegal chop shops were shut down, with 80 arrests also being made.

Remarkably, it seems that criminals have been thinking ahead to avoid arrest – with, in most cases, police finding industrial-sized ‘jammers’ on the sites they raided. These block the signal from GPS and GSM locators.

Tracker says it was able to overcome these because its devices uniquely combine VHF with GPS and GSM technology – which is immune to signal jamming.

Car thieves were disappointed to discover this when the police turned up, duly recovering hundreds of vehicles including many that were not actually fitted with Tracker devices.

Apparently, Essex is the UK’s chop shop prime hot spot. That’s because it’s near to Tilbury Docks, making it easy for thieves to ship stolen car parts abroad. The number of chop shops closed in Essex alone was in double figures.

"Thieves are stealing vehicles to order, whether to sell on as they are, or strip them for their parts to meet growing demand," explains Tracker’s head of police liaison Clive Wain.

Because the legitimate automotive market is struggling to supply parts for vehicles of all ages, Thatcham last year not only recovered a £150k Range Rover, but also a £1000 Audi A3.

Many vehicle parts are being sold "very lucratively" on the black market, after cars have been disassembled in chop shops.

Wain added that such is the demand for black market car parts, thieves are even now resorting to car cannibalisation – where vehicles are stripped for parts where they have been parked, rather than being stolen and dismantled elsewhere.

As chop shop closures continue to accelerate, the risk of car cannibalisation could also increase too, said Wain.

6 top tips for vehicle security

  • Protect your key fob with a faraday bag
  • Switch off and lock up every time you leave your car
  • Make life difficult with physical barriers
  • Don’t leave things on show inside the vehicle
  • Keep all paperwork away from the car
  • Plan for the worst when considering vehicle security measures
Ask HJ

What are the best steering locks or security devices for a Mercedes?

Could you tell me which security device/ steering wheel lock is best for a Mercedes AMG C53? I have read that many of them damage the leather steering wheel.
You can read our reviews of some steering locks on the Honest John Kit website here: https://kit.honestjohn.co.uk/category/safety-security, but we would recommend the Stoplock Pro Elite which has a wide range of adjustment to suit a variety of steering wheels, or the Disklok which can be purchase with a protective cover that goes over your steering wheel before the lock to prevent damage.
Answered by David Ross
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