Why Hybrids Are Now Britain's Most Stolen Cars

For years, the cars thieves wanted most were the obvious ones: high-volume Fords and big premium SUVs. DVLA's latest records show a newer pattern. Per car on the road, the UK's most stolen cars are now mostly hybrids, and almost all of them are Toyotas and Lexuses.

The figures below come from DVLA's stolen-vehicle records for 2025, released under Freedom of Information, divided by the number of each model licensed (DfT statistics). You can look up your own model on our car theft statistics page.

Hybrids are stolen at twice the rate of petrol cars

Grouped by fuel type, the gap is clear:

Hybrids and plug-in hybrids make up about 11% of the cars on UK roads but 19% of car thefts. A hybrid is roughly twice as likely to be stolen as a petrol car, and two and a half times as likely as a fully electric one.

The models at the top

Rank every car with at least 20,000 on the road by theft rate and the top of the table is dominated by Toyota's hybrid technology:

• Lexus NX: 21.5 per 1,000. That is about 1 in 46, nearly 14 times the UK average of 1.56.
• Lexus RX: 16.2 per 1,000
• Toyota RAV4: 9.1 per 1,000
• Hyundai Ioniq: 8.4 per 1,000
• Lexus UX: 8.1 per 1,000
• Mitsubishi Outlander: 7.1 per 1,000, most of them plug-in hybrids
• Toyota C-HR: 6.8 per 1,000

The trend is going the wrong way, too. Lexus NX thefts more than doubled in a year, from 394 in 2024 to 945 in 2025, and the Toyota C-HR rose from 747 to 963, at a time when car thefts overall fell by 12.9%.

Why thieves want them

They can be stolen without the key

Most of these cars have keyless entry and push-button start. That makes them open to relay attacks, where one thief holds a device near your front door to pick up the key fob's signal and a second relays it to the car, which unlocks and starts.

Security researchers have also demonstrated CAN injection attacks on Toyota and Lexus models. Thieves reach the car's internal wiring from outside, often by pulling back a wheel-arch liner to get at a headlight connector, and plug in a device that tells the car a valid key is present. No signal from your fob is needed, so a signal-blocking pouch alone doesn't stop it.

They are worth a lot, at home and abroad

Toyota and Lexus hybrids hold their value, are famously reliable and sell well overseas, which makes them attractive to gangs who steal to order and export. Those that stay in the UK can be broken up: hybrid batteries, headlights and body panels are all in demand.

Catalytic converters are a separate problem

Hybrids, especially older Toyota Prius models, are also targeted for their catalytic converters, which contain valuable metals. That is theft from the car rather than of it, so it doesn't show in these figures, but it adds to the risk for hybrid owners. Our most stolen cars guide covers it in more detail.

Electric cars are the exception

If hybrids are the most stolen cars, fully electric ones are among the least. They were stolen at 1.08 per 1,000 in 2025, below petrol cars. The two Teslas, the Model Y (0.10) and Model 3 (0.17), had the lowest rates of any popular car. They are always connected, so the owner can see where the car is from their phone, and they can be set to ask for a PIN before they will drive.

Not every EV is safe, though: Nissan Leaf thefts rose from 48 to 230 in a year. See the full least stolen cars list.

How to protect a hybrid

No single measure stops every method, so combine them:

1. Block the key signal. Keep keyless fobs in a signal-blocking (Faraday) pouch or tin at home, away from doors and windows. Some cars let you switch off keyless entry or put the fob to sleep. Check your handbook.
2. Use a visible steering wheel lock. It works against every electronic method, and it tells a thief your car will take longer than the one next door.
3. Add a second immobiliser. An aftermarket immobiliser that needs a PIN code or a separate tag before the engine will start defeats both relay and CAN injection attacks, because a fake "key present" message isn't enough.
4. Fit a tracker. It won't stop the theft, but it greatly improves the chance of getting the car back, and insurers often ask for one on high-risk models.
5. Make it awkward to reach. A garage, a gate or a lockable driveway post slows thieves down. Good lighting and a camera help too.

Buying a used hybrid?

High theft rates also mean more stolen and cloned cars for sale. Before buying a used hybrid, run a free car check to make sure the DVLA details match the car in front of you, and consider a full history check for stolen, write-off and finance markers.