Fleet and
Fleet Management
by Chad Fichardt
SA
Vehicle Crime
the R8.5bn
automotive
industry problem
A staggering R8.5 billion
worth of vehicles are stolen
and hijacked in SA annually.
The majority of these, almost
I
n a recent presentation to busi-
Of the R8.5 billion worth of vehicles
ness leaders, Hugo van Zyl, CEO of
stolen, R4.9 billion’s worth are taken
the South African Insurance Crime
across the border; R3.1 billion stay in
Bureau (SAICB), spelled out the
SA as cloned vehicles and R514 million
reality of the situation.
end up in chop shops across SA.
30%, are taken across the
He pulled no punches, identifying lead-
To make matters worse, last year
border to neighbouring
ers of some of SA’s largest companies
approximately
countries where syndicates are
in a call to action. He provided alarming
appeared into the system, costing
insights into the evolving mechanisms
a fortune for the insurance industry
related to vehicle crime and corruption,
to pay out claims where they were
making huge profits and South
Africans are footing the bill.
39000
vehicles
re-
and the financial impact these have on
unaware that these vehicles were in
The local automotive industry,
the country.
fact cloned. When you insure a cloned
being one of the hardest hit,
“Cloned vehicle and cross-border syn-
needs to stand together to
dicates are a growing concern, thanks
curtail its impact.
to our porous borders and the fact that
vehicle, insurance companies don’t
have to pay out because the incorrect
vehicle is reflected on the books.
Car dealerships continue to be tar-
yet pooling resources effectively,” he
geted by criminals stealing directly from
said.
showroom floors and wash bays.
“Data sharing is the key.” His was an
This is confirmed by Ian Adendorff,
impassioned appeal for business and
head of dealer business at Tracker,
crime prevention unity. “If we stand
“Dealerships continue to be hit hard
together now, we will win.”
56
crime prevention stakeholders aren’t
by syndicates due to their lax controls.
• logistics in action • october 2014