Do you happen to own Cadillac’s luxury Escalade SUV? If so, please be on the watch as it is 6 times as likely as the average vehicle to be stolen by auto thieves. Data was reported from insurance claims for 2008-2010 vehicles by the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI). For years the Escalade has dominated HLDI’s list of vehicles with the most theft claims. Four variants of the luxury SUV appear at the top of the list including the EXT, which has a pickup bed. It’s ranked worst, with more than 14 claims per 1,000 insured vehicle years, or more than 8 times the average. An insured vehicle year is 1 vehicle insured for 1 year, 2 for 6 months, etc.
Pickups are another favorite of thieves, and the Ford F-250 crew cab 4-wheel-drive comes in second to the Escalade for the most theft claims, with other models ranking high on the list. Overall, pickups have much higher theft losses than passenger cars and SUVs ($24 per insured vehicle year versus $9 and $12, respectively), though from 2007 to 2009 pickup losses fell substantially. The decrease may be because of the fact that ignition immobilizers, which prevent vehicles from being hot-wired, recently have become more common in pickups. The technology became widespread in cars and SUVs earlier.
