Map reveals car theft hotspots in UK where THOUSANDS of motors are pinched every month – do you live in a danger zone?

THE WORST areas for car theft in the UK where thousands of motors are pinched every month have been revealed in a map.

Data from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) unveiled where each of the 61,343 cars nicked last year was stolen from.

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London was the worst area for total car thefts in 2024[/caption]

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The West Midlands had the highest number of car thefts relative to its population last year[/caption]

Greater London was the biggest offender for thefts, with 14,106 being stolen from the capital area last year, according to What Car? analysis.

However, given it is the largest county in the UK by population (8,908,081), this comes as no real surprise.

But when we look into the worst areas for thefts relative to population, it’s the West Midlands that comes out on top.

While it had less than half the number of thefts as London (7,694), its population is far smaller.

This means the number of cars stolen per 1,000 people was 2.64 in 2024, compared to just 1.58 for Greater London, which takes second place.

Closely following behind in third place was South Yorkshire, which had 1,979 thefts last year, the equivalent of 1.41 thefts per 1,000 people.

At the other end of the table, we find the safest areas for your vehicle are likely to be found outside of England.

Both Northern Ireland and Scotland on the whole had far lower rates of car theft than in England, with both being in the top 10 safest areas.

Northern Ireland itself took the top spot, with just 0.11 thefts per 1,000 people last year (213 total vehicles stolen).

Scotland had 1,305 thefts, giving it a ratio of just 0.24 thefts per 1,000 people.

In comparison, 50,734 vehicles were nicked in 2024 from English streets, the equivalent of 0.92 cars per 1,000 people.

Wales sat in the middle of these two ends, with 1,461 vehicle thefts last year, giving it a ratio of 0.46 vehicles stolen per 1,000 people.

The safest place in England was Cumbria, where just 84 motors were nicked last year, meaning it had a ratio of just 0.17 thefts per 1,000 people.

Rutland in the East Midlands saw the smallest actual number of thefts, just 13 in 2024, but its miniscule population of just 39,697 means it had a ratio of 0.33 thefts per 1,000 people.

The Ford Fiesta was the most frequently stolen model last year, with 4,446 of the compacts being nicked.

However, some of these pinched motors were far more valuable than your average Fiesta.

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South Yorkshire had the third highest number of car thefts relative to its population last year[/caption]

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A 2024 Ferrari Purosangue, similar to this one here, was the most expensive car stolen last year[/caption]

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The second most expensive nicked motor was a 2023 Rolls Royce Cullinan, similar to this one pictured here[/caption]

In fact, many exotic and pricey models of motor were nabbed last year, including a 2024 Ferrari Purosangue worth £375,000 that was taken from Hoddesdon in Hertfordshire.

Also making the costly list was a 2023 Rolls Royce Cullinan worth £270,000, nicked from Stanford-le-Hope in Essex.

Filling up the top of the list were two Lamborghinis, a 2024 Urus Performante worth £260,000 and a 2024 Huracan Tecnica worth £250,000, that were both stolen from Belvedere in London.

Late last year, cops raided a workshop full of stolen luxury cars in Birmingham, finding luxury cars ranging from a sleek Audi to an £80,000 Mercedes.

Officers found a cache of premium motors at an illicit warehouse at Venue Close, in Nechells, Birmingham, on December 23.

West Midlands Police traced the site after a lead following a car burglary in Staffordshire earlier in December.

Cops discovered a Mercedes M4, VW Golf and an Audi which were undergoing the process of having their ID’s changed.