Become a Member: Get Ad-Free Access to 3,000+ Reviews, Guides, & More

Biggest vehicle theft rise is in motorcycles

Lock it or lose it motorcycle theft tougher thefts preventing security

Motor vehicle theft in Australia increased by 3% in the past year, largely due to a 9% rise in motorcycle theft. 

Motorcycle theft rose by 720 vehicles to a total of 8928, with a recovery rate of 48% in the 12 months to March 2019, according to the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council.Biggest rise is in motorcycle theft

Joy ride theft was up 7%, but profit-motivated theft, usually by organised gangs, was up 10%.

This is a worrying trend because motorcycle thefts in 2018 were up 7.3%.

Motorcycle theft is also up 1.5% in the past four years compared with the previous four. But then motorcycle ownership is also up.

Thefts rise in most states

Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hrambanis says the biggest rise in motorcycle theft continues to be in NSW and Queensland.

State or Territory 2017-04 to 2018-03 2018-04 to 2019-03 % change
Thefts Thefts
ACT 138
1.7
105
1.2
-23.9% 
NSW 1,758
21.4
2,022
22.6
15.0% 
NT 113
1.4
84
0.9
-25.7% 
QLD 1,474
18.0
1,794
20.1
21.7% 
SA 542
6.6
623
7.0
14.9% 
TAS 120
1.5
162
1.8
35.0% 
VIC 2,031
24.7
2,051
23.0
1.0% 
WA 2,032
24.8
2,087
23.4
2.7% 
AUS 8,208 100.0 8,928 100.0 8.8% 

Queensland’s rise could be explained by the fact that it left the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council seven years ago under the Newman Government.

It will rejoin the body from July 1 to find ways of preventing vehicle theft.

The RACQ has applauded the move.

“The Police Minister’s commitment to rejoin this theft prevention group is the right move,” says safety officer and Bonneville rider Steve Spalding.

“Since 2012 our leaders have backed out of financially supporting the [council] and subsequently missed out on receiving funding for locally delivered crime prevention programs, so we’re now looking forward to seeing our state reap these long-awaited benefits.”

The council is currently investigating the efficacy of tougher penalties for vehicle theft.

The worst hotspots for motorcycle theft continue to be South East Queensland, Melbourne, Sydney/Newcastle and Perth.

State or Territory LGA 2014-04 to 2015-03 2018-04 to 2019-03 % change
QLD Brisbane (City) 299 448 49.8% 
QLD Gold Coast (City) 157 269 71.3% 
VIC Melbourne (City) 137 254 85.4% 
QLD Logan (City) 113 182 61.1% 
NSW Sydney (City) 118 163 38.1% 
NSW Newcastle (City) 45 158 251.1% 
QLD Moreton Bay (Regional Council) 124 155 25.0% 
WA Swan (City) 109 147 34.9% 
WA Stirling (City) 141 146 3.5% 
WA Broome (Shire) 96 126 31.2% 

Easy to steal

Motorcycles and scooters are the easiest vehicles to steal because they are lighter than other vehicles and difficult to lock and anchor.

And the lighter the bike or scooter, the more likely it is to be stolen.

Cubic capacity 2014-04 to 2015-03 % of thefts 2018-04 to 2019-03 % of thefts
50 cc or less 1,048
13.1
890
10.0
51 – 100 cc 178
2.2
97
1.1
101 – 150 cc 835
10.4
957
10.7
151 – 200 cc 137
1.7
168
1.9
201 – 250 cc 1,110
13.9
942
10.6
251 – 500 cc 978
12.2
1,187
13.3
501 – 750 cc 782
9.8
833
9.3
751 – 1000 cc 394
4.9
437
4.9
1001 cc or more 288
3.6
290
3.2
Electric 1
0.0
1
0.0
Unknown 2,255
28.2
3,126
35.0

This is also reflected in the prevalence of scooter brands in the most marques.

Obviously, the most common motorcycles on the road also feature in the theft stats.

Make 2014-04 to 2015-03 2018-04 to 2019-03
Honda 1,571 1,882
Yamaha 1,475 1,540
Kawasaki 734 819
Suzuki 769 772
KTM 482 604
SYM 188 252
Harley-Davidson 171 225
Kymco 111 222
Piaggio 142 203
Triumph 129 187
Hyosung 149 166
Longjia 158 148
Husqvarna 109 136
Aprilia 72 99
Ducati 67 85
TGB 111 81
Vespa 66 78
BMW 47 71
Bolwell 78 66
Vmoto 115 66