Experts at vehicle tracking experts Global Telemetrics have revealed the Range Rover Sport and Vogue models were two of the most stolen cars in 2020. The Range Rover Sport accounted for 22 percent of the total theft recoveries with the Vogue making five percent of recoveries.
Range Rover’s and Land Rover models accounted for 44 percent of total recoveries.
Specialists warn Range Rover’s have filled the top spots for the third year in a row, making them a consistent target for thieves.
The Land Rover Discovery was the third most stolen vehicle of the year followed by the Fiat Dicato and Ford Transit.
The BMW X5 and X6 were also common targets according to the fresh new data relating to Global Telemetrics UK wide vehicle recovery data.
Thefts are a nationwide issue. However, hotspots include London, Kent, Essex, the West Midlands and Greater Manchester.
Experts at Global Telemetrics have claimed the issues are mainly used by keyless car entry which was causing a massive headache for owners.
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Gavin Hennessey, Operations Manager at Global Telemetrics said keyless thefts were becoming “increasingly popular” with “advanced technology” able to steal cars within seconds.
He said: “So many still do not realise that a thief needs only a few minutes to capture the signal emitted from keyless entry ‘keys’ or to clone your key, nor do they realise that it can be done from outside the property without having to physically handle the keys.
“Attacks of this kind are becoming increasingly popular as car thieves, particularly amongst organised crime where cars are stolen to order, utilise advanced technology to steal cars within seconds.
“When you consider this can be prevented with the use of a faraday bag, which blocks the key’s signal transmission to outside sources, it’s hard to believe that keyless theft continues to be such an ongoing issue.”
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Away from keyless entry, classic burglary and vehicle hijacking are also used by criminals to steal vehicles.
Mr Hennessy added: “It’s easy to throw your keys onto the hallway side table, hang them in the kitchen or even leave them in the door at night, but these are also the first places thieves look.
“Consider finding a less obvious hiding place to avoid becoming a victim of car theft.”
Analysis from Tracker revealed the luxurious Range Rover Sport was the vehicle targeted by thieves in 2019 and 2020.
He said: “Keyless car thefts are continuing to rise at an alarming rate, as criminal groups reverse-engineer the latest manufacturer security tech to steal valuable vehicles quickly and discreetly.
“It took just 80 seconds to steal a £120,000 bespoke Range Rover that was fitted with one of our tracking devices from a supermarket car park in Walthamstow, London.
“It was broad daylight, and not one person noticed what the thieves were doing.
“The car was recovered within 24 hours and it appeared that the thieves had searched for tracking devices before leaving the vehicle parked unoccupied to see if the police would track its whereabouts.
“Because the Tracker device was professionally installed, the thieves were unable to find it, leaving the police to quickly track its location.”
Express.co.uk has contacted Land Rover for comment.