Motorcycle theft continues to drop in pandemic

Motor vehicle theft in Australia is now at its lowest figure since the start of the millennium thanks to the pandemic lockdowns.

The biggest decline has been in motorcycle theft which is down 16.8% over the same time last year and 7.1% from four years ago.

While the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council recognises that thefts have dropped wth thew lockdowns in most eastern states, the biggest drop in motorcycle thefts in the past year has been in Western Australia where there have been the least number of lockdowns.

WA recorded a 28.7% drop in thefts from a national high of 2167 to 1545 which s behind NSW (1916), Victoria (1910) and Queensland (1686).

Surely riders should now be contacting their insurance provider and asking for a reduced premium.

Australian motorcycle thefts
State or Territory 2019 2020

% change

Thefts

% of thefts

Thefts

% of thefts

ACT 126 1.3 92 1.1 -27.0%
NSW 2,142 22.1 1,916 23.8 -10.6%
NT 97 1.0 61 0.8 -37.1%
QLD 2,010 20.8 1,686 20.9 -16.1%
SA 824 8.5 697 8.7 -15.4%
TAS 192 2.0 148 1.8 -22.9%
VIC 2,122 21.9 1,910 23.7 -10.0%
WA 2,167 22.4 1,545 19.2 -28.7%
AUS 9,680 100.0 8,055 100.0 -16.8%

While it is worth challenging your insurance premium at your next renewal, residents of South East Queensland and the Perth region may have some difficulty supporting their request.

Although these local government authorities are experiencing substantial motorcycle theft reductions, they still feature high in the top 10 LGAs for motorcycle theft.

State or Territory LGA 2019 2020 % change
QLD Brisbane (City) 526 511 -2.9% 
QLD Gold Coast (City) 283 229 -19.1% 
VIC Melbourne (City) 250 210 -16.0% 
QLD Moreton Bay (Regional Council) 184 143 -22.3% 
NSW Sydney (City) 149 131 -12.1% 
NSW Newcastle (City) 130 125 -3.8% 
QLD Logan (City) 200 122 -39.0% 
NSW Blacktown (City) 120 111 -7.5% 
VIC Moreland (City) 107 109 1.9% 
WA Cockburn (City) 171 103 -39.8% 

Thieves are mainly targeting scooters and small dirt bikes which are easier to steal and repurpose.

More than a quarter of all motorcycles stolen are under 500cc.

The list of brands being stolen also reflects the popularity of those brands, although scooter brands feature much higher than their presence on our roads.

Top motorcycle theft targets, 2020
Make 2019 2020
Honda 2,107 1,697
Yamaha 1,667 1,408
Suzuki 868 759
Kawasaki 929 724
KTM 638 567
SYM 352 307
Kymco 244 233
Piaggio 202 200
Harley Davidson 213 161
Husqvarna 159 155
Triumph 197 137
Longjia 150 121
Hyosung 164 113
Vespa 78 90
BMW 91 86
Ducati 106 84
Aprilia 99 79
TGB 87 62
CFMoto 56 61
Vmoto 58 54

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

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