Car flights have been increasing in France for a few years. A disturbing phenomenon, and which concerns more particularly two very popular brands in France.
Vehicle flights have reached records in France in recent years, with just over 70,000 cars and utilities stolen in 2023, according to consolidated data from insurers, or nearly 200 flights. A disturbing phenomenon, up 11 % compared to 2022, which concerns more particularly certain brands and certain very popular models of thieves, but which is also concentrated in regions more affected than others.
This increase goes against received ideas, according to which modern vehicles are better secure. In practice, it is exactly the opposite. Traditional methods – broken windows, tear off – represent only 30 % of cases. Today, thieves use electronic boxes capable of cloning contactless keys in a few seconds, or software hacking vehicle calculators via their OBD socket. These techniques, invisible and fast, explain why 7 in 10 flights are done without leaving traces. Hybrid or electric models are particularly vulnerable to these attacks because of their high-tech components, including their batteries, whose value on the black market can exceed 10,000 euros.
In addition, some departments concentrate almost 40 % of flights: Bouches-du-Rhône, North, Val-d’Oise and Seine-Saint-Denis Le Rhône. Their common point? Proximity to major logistics axes – Mediterranean ports, Ile -de -France airports, highways to Eastern Europe – which facilitate the export of vehicles. In detail, Marseille and its region are trusted first place, with cars often transported to the Maghreb in less than 48 hours. Île-de-France, hub for international trafficking, sees its premium SUVs disappear towards Eastern Europe. However, the networks now extend their radius of action to medium-sized cities like Tours or Clermont-Ferrand, where surveillance is less dense
Unsurprisingly, French brands are the most popular. And for good reason, these are the best -sold on the territory, with millions of copies in circulation. Renault and Peugeot occupy the heads with specific models: Clio IV (2,378 flights identified in 2023), Megane IV (1,297 flights), 3008 II (1,181 vols), 308 II (1,177 vols), 208 and second generations (2,097 accumulated flights) and Clio III (985 flights).
And if the smaller figures due to their more limited diffusion, premium cars are not spared by the phenomenon, with a preference for Japanese models: the Toyota Rav4 V, Lexus RX II, Lexus NX, Audi A3 and other Alfa Romeo Giulietta II are privileged targets of thieves who resell them at a good price.
Cars are not the only ones: the utilities are also very popular. The Renault Master III is the most stolen utility in 2023, with 934 flights reported in 2023, followed by the Peugeot Boxer III, the Iveco Daily III, the Citroën Jumper III, the Renault Trafic III and the Peugeot Expert IV. And if the thieves target these vehicles for their spare parts, they also appreciate them for their ability to transport goods, which makes them particularly attractive to the black market.