Car Thieves Can't Get Enough Of The Land Rover Defender Because It's Cooler Than Ever

Following the end of Land Rover Defender production earlier this year, something rather inevitable happened. Demand for used examples went up, and so did values. Since the Defender - which was in production in one form or another for 68 years - has never been a particularly secure vehicle, this means there’s been a spike in thefts.

In South Yorkshire for example, Defender sales have shot up by 69 per cent in the last few months, and in the last 12 months insurers NFU Mutual said that claims for the vehicles had hit £760,000. A big chunk of the cars are stolen to order before being shipped out of the country.

To make matters worse, it seems many thieves are particularly adept at getting around the Defender’s standard security systems. Sergeant Nick Hill of North Yorkshire Police said: “It appears an organised group of criminals is specifically targeting this make and model of vehicle….Of greatest concern to us is that it is evident these thieves have knowledge of this particular vehicle’s factory-fitted security and electrical systems.”

In response, police are advising owners to consider fitting aftermarket security systems such as tracking devices

Sources: The Northern Echo and Autocar