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From: SBD

Countries like Malaysia without mandatory immobilisation suffer the highest theft risk

October 2010 11:39

By David Green, SBD Vehicle Security Technical Specialist

According to SBD’s latest study on global vehicle theft, those countries which are yet to make electronic immobilisers mandatory on all passenger vehicles are the countries that see the highest theft risks.

One such country is Malaysia, where vehicle theft has more than doubled in the past ten years. Whilst this has slowed and even shown signs of reduction in 2009, vehicle theft remains a big issue affecting many customers.

This may be set to change with the recent announcement from the Malaysian Road Transport Department that mandates an “anti-theft� device on all new vehicles. This means that passenger vehicles will be required, by law, to be fitted with both an electronic and a mechanical immobiliser.

Additionally, the Malaysian market continues to evolve as the motor insurance industry is gradually deregulated. Insurers are currently still largely governed by the Motor Tariff. In the future, there will inevitably be long-term changes to the way that theft premiums are calculated. Big players in the market such as Allianz Malaysia have already been promoting the benefits of offering incentives for fitment of security, reducing theft risk for customers and insurers alike.

Any change in the insurance industry coupled with the new legislation will encourage vehicle manufacturers to fit more security. Higher fitment of immobilisers, in particular, has previously proven to dramatically cut the levels of opportunistic theft in countries across Europe where legislation has been in place for around 15 years.

Low-value vehicles continue to be the most stolen models in Malaysia, but there are increasing levels of high-value vehicle theft year on year. Police are discovering many organised car theft syndicates - often using high-tech theft methods in order to overcome security such as alarms and immobilisers. There are even reports of Malaysian car thieves being sent to Japan on secret ‘training courses’ on the ways of beating the latest vehicle security on Japanese brand vehicles.

Whilst changes in the insurance industry and in legislation are both positive steps in the fight against vehicle theft, it remains to be seen whether this will seriously impact the long-term trends and the growing numbers of vehicles stolen by professional gangs across Malaysia.

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