Relay attack

Stolen cars: why ‘chop shops’ are the new threat for car buyers

chop shops
Chop shops are like legitimate garages but stolen cars are stripped for their parts (Picture iStock/Patrick Heagney)

If you’re unlucky enough to have your car stolen, there’s a very good chance it will end up in what’s known as a chop shop. There it will be dismantled or chopped up and its parts will either be sold to innocent consumers or used to repair wrecked cars.

Why might this be a problem for car buyers?

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Keyless car theft: how to protect your car from new relay technique

Keyless car theft

Crooks can bypass car security systems as long as their equipment can pick up the signal from keyless fobs

Thieves are increasingly targeting cars with keyless ignitions. Just as drivers can get into their cars without touching the key, so crooks can steal the car without having the key on them. And a new technique called relay attack is being used increasingly.

Vehicle recovery company Tracker says 66 per cent of the cars it recovered last year were stolen by relay. And Tracker claims that 96 per cent of drivers whose cars have keyless ignition could be vulnerable to this form of theft.

Andy Barrs, head of police liaison for Tracker said: “The new relay attack technique has gained significant ground in the US and Germany. But it’s also beginning to take hold in the UK, so vehicle owners need to protect themselves and their assets.” Here are some simple steps drivers can take to prevent themselves becoming victims.

How ‘relay’ theft works

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