Theft of automobile spare parts: a growing phenomenon in France

The front of a car, completely boned. Both headlights and bumper stolen during the night. A hard blow for its owner. “Going to work at 5 a.m., I got up and found it with the hood open, no more,” says Olivier Gonçalves, victim of theft of spare parts. On the same street, another vehicle, located under the windows of a resident, was also vandalized. “It’s like mine last year, in fact,” notes Laurence Bernada. She too was a victim and she remains very scarred. “We go to bed at night and we're not sure we'll find our car in the same condition the next morning and we have to take private parking,” she regrets. “Besides, well, it’s a budget, we already have to find one.”

Individuals are not the only ones targeted. Last July, a garage in Savoie was the victim of a large-scale theft. Six cars dismantled for damage estimated at 50,000 euros. Often, the same procedure. Thefts at night, as France Télévisions observed on video surveillance images. Men park: it will only take them a few minutes to dismantle the front of a car before leaving. And the phenomenon is far from isolated. Last year, no fewer than 95,300 vehicles were targeted for parts theft.

Online resale, opportunistic theft or international networks

So where does all this equipment go? And who is behind this traffic? According to one expert, many pieces are put back on sale almost immediately on second-hand sites. “C3 bench seat, 350 euros, 200 euros, there are a plethora of them, there are dozens and dozens,” reports Pierre-Olivier Marie, deputy editor-in-chief of the caradisiac.com site. “A simple lighthouse today is a concentrate of technology and therefore all of that, the manufacturers charge you a lot of money when there is theft or breakage, and inevitably that can give ideas.”

Opportunistic thefts, but also highly organized networks abroad, attracted by spare parts which contain precious metals, such as rhodium, whose value exceeds that of gold. They are found in particular in exhaust pipes. “There are sectors which are more international, with automobile parts which are exported, criminal networks which operate in particular in eastern Europe”, explains Yohann Fossard, national delegate of the police union Investigation Un1té. The law severely punishes thieves, but also buyers. For concealment, the penalty incurred is 5 years in prison and a fine of 375,000 euros.