Victoria Tops Australia for Car Theft Claims With $243 Million in Losses

“A car is stolen or broken into every 42 minutes in Victoria,” Insurance Council of Australia CEO Andrew Hall said.

A burnt out vehicle is pictured at a crime scene in Melbourne, Australia, on Nov. 9, 2018. William West/AFP via Getty Images

Victoria has recorded the highest car theft insurance claims in the country, with insurers paying out $243 million (US$173 million) last year for motor vehicle theft.

Insurance Statistics Australia data (pdf) reveals Victoria recorded more than 12,500 claims in 2025, representing a 25 percent increase in volume and a 37 percent surge in costs compared to the previous year.

In addition, Victoria’s insurance total bill was higher than all other states in Australia combined.

Metropolitan Melbourne suffered the worst with 10,400 claims worth $205 million. Those numbers jumped 30 percent by volume and 42 percent by value on the previous year.

Insurance Council of Australia CEO Andrew Hall said a car is stolen or broken into every 42 minutes in Victoria.

“This level of crime is not acceptable. Each year, Victoria’s numbers stand apart from the rest of the country, and that gap is widening,” he said.

“While every other State is effectively reducing car theft, in Victoria the volume of claims and the costs involved remain at unacceptable levels and that sustained pattern is what’s most concerning.”

Premier’s Respond

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan acknowledged that motor vehicle theft is a “serious issue” in Victoria.

“It is also a concerning and for some traumatic experience to happen to anyone. It is just unacceptable,” she said in parliament.

“That is why, in backing the work of Victoria Police, we are taking advice from Victoria Police, who tell us that organised crime is a big issue behind this matter, where we know that organised crime is recruiting young people to do their dirty work and treating them like disposable assets.”

Meanwhile, state Opposition Leader Jess Wilson said Victoria is the “car theft capital” of Australia.

“32,000 cars were stolen across Victoria in the last year, that’s one every 16 minutes. Insurance claims for car theft are up 25 percent, while seven in ten stolen vehicles remain unsolved,” she said.

She said the Liberal Party would end the crime crisis by recruiting 3,000 more police, reopening closed police stations and a tough new one-strike bail rule, along with enforcing adult time for adult crime laws.

Queensland Records Largest Drop in Motor Theft Claims

Nationally, claims rose 2.5 percent to around 29,000 in 2025, with total costs reaching $485 million. If  Victoria was removed from the picture, both claims and costs would have dropped.

Queensland saw motor theft claims fall 12 percent from the previous year, marking the largest decline on record for the state.

Western Australia recorded a 15 percent decline. South Australia saw a 14 percent fall, while New South Wales posted a small 1.6 percent drop.