Jaguar Land Rover backs UK police to tackle vehicle theft as it looks to reduce premiums

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is investing more than £1m to help police tackle vehicle thefts in the UK.

The money will be used to support police forces with additional resources when responding to thefts in hotspots across the country.

It will also pay for a new national policing unit to gather intelligence on thefts.

The move forms part of JLR’s strategy to tackle vehicle thefts and the impact on insurance premiums for its clients.

“We are constantly developing our systems and security features and through our close collaboration with police, we stay ahead of any emerging methods and quickly deploy anti-theft measures,” Patrick McGillycuddy, managing director of JLR UK, said.

“This additional investment, coupled with our other ongoing and proactive action, shows our commitment to supporting the authorities in having a tangible impact on combating this issue in the UK.”

Capacity

Back in December 2023, JLR started offering Range Rover clients bespoke insurance after customers experienced a rise of thefts, leading to problems in obtaining cover.

However, JLR said its latest generation of vehicles is “proving highly resilient to thefts”.

For example, Police National Computer (PNC) data shows since January 2022, only 0.2% of new Range Rover and new Range Rover Sports have been stolen, while only 0.3% of new Defenders have been affected since launch in 2020.

JLR’s latest investment means specialist officers will have more capacity to investigate thefts and monitor activity at the ports exploited by criminal gangs to export vehicles.

Pilot operations with two police forces have resulted in stolen vehicle recoveries and arrests.