Britain’s most stolen cars: We reveal the 100 models targeted most by thieves

Lexus and Abarth owners are being warned to keep a close eye on their motors because their cars are statically most likely to be stolen.

Analysis of Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) data has discovered which brands and models are typically being targeted most by thieves, based on the volume of thefts per cars registered in Britain.

While Ford’s Fiesta was earlier this year named the nation’s most pinched car based on the 4,719 examples reported stolen in 2024, some 69 other models are statistically more at risk, the new data shows.

This is because with over 1.5million Fiestas on the road, owners statistically have a one-in-312 chance of falling victim to car crime.

The most targeted car, a luxury model from Lexus, however, is statistically far more at threat, with a one-in-30 theft rate based on the number pinched versus total registrations.

In fact, Lexus, along with Fiat’s sporty division Abarth, is one of the brands most commonly targeted by organised car theft gangs going equipped with advanced technology to pinch the latest high-value models.  

Scroll to the bottom of this page to see if you car is in the top 100 most targeted motors – and what proportion of examples on the road were nicked in 2024.

Analysis of car theft record for 2024 shows which models and brands were targeted most commonly. While Ford has the highest volume if thefts, proportionally its not among the 10 most-pinched marques… 

Last year on average, 168 cars were pilfered per day by criminals – that’s seven every hour. 

And new analysis of DVLA records by automotive agency Loop found Abarth is the marque most at risk of being taken by thieves.

One-in-116 Abarths were stolen in 2024, the data shows, with criminals identifying the sporty version of the Fiat 500 one of the key targets to go after last year. One-in-87 registered were stolen last year, according to the report.

But the brand that really came a cropper in 2024 was Lexus.

At brand level, one in every 120 Lexus cars registered in Britain were stolen last year.

But digging deeper into the list of models most at risk proportionally shows that five of the top 10 targeted vehicles were from the Japanese luxury arm of Toyota.

In fact, thefts of the ES 300 premium saloon were so prevalent that owners faced a staggering one-in-30 chance of theirs going missing last year, putting it in first place of models most tempting to car thieves. 

Last year there were 6,587 ES 300s registered, and 221 thefts recorded, Loop found.

And the Japanese brand’s RX 450 didn’t fare much better. 

One in ever 39 examples of the popular SUV were taken in 2024 – that’s 717 thefts out of 27,837 registered examples in Britain.

Lexus is commonly targeted by car thieves. Aside from Abarth, it is the most likely to see its models pinched. One-in-120 Lexus cars were stolen last year, the analysis shows

Five Lexus models featured in the most likely to be stolen round up, with the ES saloon (pictured) the most likely to be stolen car with an incredulous one-in-30 chance of being taken

The other three Lexus models targeted include the LC 500 luxury sports coupe, UX 250 compact SUV and NX 300 mid-sized SUV.

These have a one-in-55, one-in-62 and ine-in-75 chance respectively of being stolen, DVLA data shows. 

This put them sixth, seventh and ninth on the list of 100 most likely to be stolen models.

A Lexus spokesman told This is Money: ‘For the past few years, there has been an industry-wide issue of vehicle theft of almost epidemic proportion in the UK, affecting the most popular models first.

‘Toyota GB has invested millions of pounds in a variety of solutions that help protect cars from theft. These include protective plates, immobilisers, blockers and trackers.

‘As a vehicle manufacturer, we can never completely eliminate the risk of vehicle theft and, in order to further reduce the theft risk, we regularly collaborate and share information with insurance associations, police and law enforcement authorities, theft prevention experts and other key stakeholders around the world. 

‘This enables us to understand new threats and techniques used by thieves and develop more secured systems.’

Lexus tells us that it spent more than £10million last year fitting tracking devices – supplied by Tracker – to some UK-registered vehicles.

‘Unfortunately, some of those customers were targeted by criminals and their cars were stolen,’ the spokesperson explains.

‘As a result of the installation of tracking devices, though, a 96 per cent recovery rate was achieved. 

‘We have subsequently rolled out Tracker installation as an option for buyers of certain models, to help add a level of customer reassurance.’

They added: ‘Our anti-theft measures form part of a nationwide customer care offering. Owners can contact their local…