VTAREC launches vehicle theft, road accident public awareness campaign

The Vehicle Theft and Accident Reduction Council of Malaysia Berhad (VTAREC) has launched its Vehicle Theft and Road Accident Public Awareness Campaign 2025. Themed ‘Protect Your Ride, Protect Your Life’, the year-long campaign, as the name very much suggests, aims to educate the public on the dangers of vehicle theft and the importance of road safety.

Collaborating with stakeholders such as the police, the road transport department (JPJ), Puspakom, the General Insurance Association of Malaysia (PIAM) and the Malaysian Takaful Association (MTA), VTAREC’s campaign will focus on, amongst others, preventive measures, precautions and the importance of having a valid driving licence, insurance and road tax.

As part of the campaign, VTAREC had some worrying statistics to share. Concerning theft, 3,925 vehicles (1,771 private cars, 1,833 motorbikes and 321 commercial vehicles) were stolen in 2024, down slightly from 4,086 (1,698 private cars, 2,100 motorbikes and 288 commercial vehicles) in 2023. On average, that’s one vehicle stolen every two hours.

And these are insurance industry statistics. The police have far higher numbers on record – it was reported in November that 13,426 vehicles were stolen in Malaysia in 2021, 14,433 in 2022, 14,592 in 2023 and 10,849 as of September 2024, which gives you an idea of how many uninsured vehicles there are running around in Malaysia. ‘Hot’ models include Protons Wira and Iswara, Peroduas Kancil and Myvi, Toyotas Hilux, Fortuner, Alphard and Vellfire, Yamahas 135LC, Y15, and 125Z, and Hondas C100, EX5 and Wave.

VTAREC says most vehicle thefts happen due to factors such as parking in dark, isolated and unguarded areas, failing to lock the vehicle and failing to keep the keys safely, and the use of chain locks (for motorbikes), steering locks and signal-blocking pouches (to store car keys) is advised.

Regarding road accidents, 266,716 cases (229,739 private cars, 15,149 motorbikes and 21,828 commercial vehicles) were reported in 2024, down from 299,657 in 2023. Again, these are insurance industry stats, so they only cover instances where insurance claims were made.

VTAREC says approximately 6,000 people die on Malaysian roads each year (70% of them on motorcycles), or one every 80 minutes on average, and that 80% of accidents are caused by human error (including speeding, phone usage, fatigue, distraction, recklessness, driving under the influence, running red lights and inadequate vehicle maintenance); 20% by poor road conditions and bad weather.

As next steps, VTAREC says it will strengthen its cooperation with ministries, agencies and relevant stakeholders to further crack down on syndicates involved in vehicle theft, cloning, rebirthing of total loss vehicles and half-cuts through more strategic interventions.