The number of catalytic converters reported to be stolen from cars in London has risen by 53% in the past year.
That’s according to statistics obtained by the London Liberal Democrats following a series of Freedom of Information requests.
The capital has seen 14,684 reported stolen converters from people’s cars in the past 12 months. This amounts to 40 reported thefts taking place in London per day.
The most severely affected borough is Barnet, which registered 1,114 thefts in 2020.
Angela Smith’s catalytic converter was removed from her BMW last Saturday. She told City News, “We didn’t even hear them. It was our neighbour who told us it was happening.
“He’d heard a weird cutting noise. And so, he looked out of the window and saw five men. Four of them had lifted up the car whilst the other was underneath.
“The fifth man was presumably removing the converter because when we went to have a look it was gone.”
“Mine was stolen last month,” says Erika Chan. “It happened in the night. I didn’t see anything.
“But when I turned on my car the next morning, I could immediately tell something was wrong. It sounded horrible.”
Maria Casey actually caught a glimpse of the people who stole her converter on Sunday night.
“I heard a saw and, because we’d had a very recent theft in the area, I knew what that sound meant.
“So, I came out to the front of the house and saw these men walking away down the road.
“I wasn’t sure if it was my car that had been robbed. As soon as I’d had a look though it was obvious that my converter was gone.”
Why are catalytic converters popular with thieves?
The rise in theft of catalytic converters may be related to the increase in value of rhodium, one of the metals used to make them.
“Catalytic converters are made of a bunch of expensive metals,” says Jason Neall, the managing director of Apex Metal Recycling in Edgware.
“Rhodium is really expensive at the moment. So that’s one of the reasons converters are so valuable.”
The price of Rhodium has skyrocketed in the last year
“The price varies when we buy them,” Mr Neall said. “This morning, we bought a catalytic converter from a Honda Prius for £505, but they can cost thousands sometimes.
When asked if he was aware of buying any illegally obtained converters, Jason said, “We don’t buy them unless the seller can provide us with codes specific to the car and converter.
“We have to have proof of ownership. There’s a lot of people who don’t on places like Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree though.”
After exploring these avenues, City News found that this was indeed true.
One seller in Wolverhampton refused to tell us where they had obtained the converter they were offering.
And a buyer in Surrey said they only asked questions of origin about “some” of the converters they bought on the website.
Submitted Article
HeadlineCatalytic Converter Theft in London Up by 53%
Short Headline40 Stolen Catalytic Converters a Day in London
StandfirstThey contain expensive metals and have proved extremely popular with thieves
Published Article
HeadlineTheft of catalytic converters from vehicles in London rises by 53%
Short Headline40 Stolen Catalytic Converters a Day in London
StandfirstThey contain expensive metals and have proved extremely popular with thieves
The number of catalytic converters reported to be stolen in London has risen by 53% in the past year.
That’s according to statistics obtained by the London Liberal Democrats following a series of freedom of information requests.
The capital has seen 14,684 reported stolen converters from people’s cars in the past 12 months. This amounts to 40 reported thefts taking place in London per day.
The most severely affected borough is Barnet, which registered 1,114 thefts in 2020. City News spoke to victims of catalytic converter theft in the area.
Angela Smith’s catalytic converter was removed from her BMW last Saturday. She told City News, “We didn’t even hear them. It was our neighbour who told us it was happening.
“He’d heard a weird cutting noise. And so, he looked out of the window and saw five men. Four of them had lifted up the car whilst the other was underneath.
“The fifth man was presumably removing the converter because when we went to have a look it was gone.”
“Mine was stolen last month,” says Erika Chan. “It happened in the night. I didn’t see anything.
“But when I turned on my car the next morning, I could immediately tell something was wrong. It sounded horrible.”
Maria Casey actually caught a glimpse of the people who stole her converter on Sunday night.
“I heard a saw and, because we’d had a very recent theft in the area, I knew what that sound meant.
“So, I came out to the front of the house and saw these men walking away down the road.
“I wasn’t sure if it was my car that had been robbed. As soon as I’d had a look though it was obvious that my converter was gone.”
But why do thieves want catalytic converters so much?
The rise in theft of catalytic converters may be related to the increase in value of Rhodium, one of the metals used to make them.
“Catalytic converters are made of a bunch of expensive metals,” says Jason Neall, the managing director of Apex Metal Recycling in Edgware.
“Rhodium is really expensive at the moment. So that’s one of the reasons converters are so valuable.”
The price of Rhodium has skyrocketed in the last year
“The price varies when we buy them,” Neall continues. “This morning, we bought a catalytic converter from a Honda Prius for £505, but they can cost thousands sometimes.
When asked if he was aware of buying any illegally obtained converters, Jason said, “We don’t buy them unless the seller can provide us with codes specific to the car and converter.
“We have to have proof of ownership. There’s a lot of people who don’t on places like Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree though.”
After exploring these avenues, City News found that this was indeed true, indicating that this might be a national problem.
One seller in Wolverhampton refused to tell us where they had obtained the converter they were offering.
And a buyer in Surrey said they only asked questions of origin about “some” of the converters they bought on the website.
The number of catalytic converters reported to be stolen from cars in London has risen by 53% in the past year.
That’s according to statistics obtained by the London Liberal Democrats following a series of Freedom of Information requests.
The capital has seen 14,684 reported stolen converters from people’s cars in the past 12 months. This amounts to 40 reported thefts taking place in London per day.
The most severely affected borough is Barnet, which registered 1,114 thefts in 2020.
Angela Smith’s catalytic converter was removed from her BMW last Saturday. She told City News, “We didn’t even hear them. It was our neighbour who told us it was happening.
“He’d heard a weird cutting noise. And so, he looked out of the window and saw five men. Four of them had lifted up the car whilst the other was underneath.
“The fifth man was presumably removing the converter because when we went to have a look it was gone.”
“Mine was stolen last month,” says Erika Chan. “It happened in the night. I didn’t see anything.
“But when I turned on my car the next morning, I could immediately tell something was wrong. It sounded horrible.”
Maria Casey actually caught a glimpse of the people who stole her converter on Sunday night.
“I heard a saw and, because we’d had a very recent theft in the area, I knew what that sound meant.
“So, I came out to the front of the house and saw these men walking away down the road.
“I wasn’t sure if it was my car that had been robbed. As soon as I’d had a look though it was obvious that my converter was gone.”
Why are catalytic converters popular with thieves?
The rise in theft of catalytic converters may be related to the increase in value of rhodium, one of the metals used to make them.
“Catalytic converters are made of a bunch of expensive metals,” says Jason Neall, the managing director of Apex Metal Recycling in Edgware.
“Rhodium is really expensive at the moment. So that’s one of the reasons converters are so valuable.”
The price of Rhodium has skyrocketed in the last year
“The price varies when we buy them,” Mr Neall said. “This morning, we bought a catalytic converter from a Honda Prius for £505, but they can cost thousands sometimes.
When asked if he was aware of buying any illegally obtained converters, Jason said, “We don’t buy them unless the seller can provide us with codes specific to the car and converter.
“We have to have proof of ownership. There’s a lot of people who don’t on places like Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree though.”
After exploring these avenues, City News found that this was indeed true.
One seller in Wolverhampton refused to tell us where they had obtained the converter they were offering.
And a buyer in Surrey said they only asked questions of origin about “some” of the converters they bought on the website.
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