Reviewing the effectiveness of electronic vehicle immobilisation: Evidence from four countries

Abstract

This article reviews the evidence from 16 studies that have examined the impact of electronic immobilisation on vehicle theft in the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia and the USA. Six hypotheses that explore how electronic immobilisers work were examined. The results show that 15 of the 16 studies indicate that electronic immobilisation has been successful in reducing vehicle theft. These reductions have mostly been larger for temporary (recovered) vehicle thefts than for permanent (unrecovered) thefts. This may also have resulted in a reduction in young people engaging in vehicle theft. Although some studies showed there had been displacement towards vehicles without electronic immobilisation, this was outweighed by the reductions in vehicle theft observed overall.