Vehicle Theft Across Greater Manchester

The longer-term direction is clear.

These figures relate specifically to theft or unauthorised taking of a motor vehicle and should not be confused with the much broader category of vehicle crime.

That distinction matters. Vehicle crime can include somebody stealing property from inside a car, interfering with a vehicle or attempting to gain access to it. For this research, we're primarily interested in cases where the vehicle itself has been taken.

The Home Office publishes police-recorded crime data by individual offence code and Community Safety Partnership, while its user guide explains how those geographic and offence classifications should be interpreted.

Official methodology: Home Office police recorded crime open data user guide

Vehicle Theft Has Fallen Sharply Since 2022

The most striking finding from the data isn't an increase in vehicle theft. It's the size of the decrease.

There were 8,243 recorded motor vehicle theft offences across Greater Manchester during 2022/23. That fell to 6,714 in 2023/24 before falling again to 5,605 in 2024/25.

In just two years, that's 2,638 fewer recorded offences, equivalent to a reduction of approximately 32%.

More recent GMP figures point in the same direction. Greater Manchester Police reported in April 2025 that between September 2024 and March 2025 there were 1,093 fewer theft-of-motor-vehicle offences than during the equivalent period a year earlier, representing a 26% reduction. Theft from vehicles fell by 28%, while vehicle interference also fell by 28%.

Source: GMP - Vehicle crime across Greater Manchester down 27 per cent

A research page about vehicle theft shouldn't exaggerate the problem simply because Secure Driveways sells security products. The official figures indicate that the situation across Greater Manchester has improved substantially. But a falling crime rate isn't the same thing as vehicle theft disappearing.

More Than 5,000 Motor Vehicle Thefts Were Still Recorded

Even after the substantial reduction, GMP's figures show 5,605 theft or unauthorised taking of motor vehicle offences during 2024/25.

That is an average of approximately 467 offences per month, or roughly 15 offences per day, across Greater Manchester.

Those averages are simply the annual total divided by 12 and 365 respectively, so they shouldn't be interpreted as the actual number recorded on any particular day. They do, however, help put 5,605 annual offences into perspective.

Greater Manchester Car Theft Hotspots by Borough

Greater Manchester is made up of ten metropolitan boroughs: Manchester, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford and Wigan.

The Home Office publishes police-recorded crime data at Community Safety Partnership level. Its user guide states that CSP areas generally correspond to single or combined local authority boundaries. The latest published CSP open dataset currently covers the year ending March 2026.

Official dataset: Home Office Police Recorded Crime and Outcomes Open Data Tables

ONS dataset page: Crime in England and Wales - Police Force Area data tables

What the Latest Borough Analysis Shows

Oldham recorded the highest rate of motor vehicle theft in our analysis, at 28.0 offences per 10,000 residents, from 706 recorded offences in the year ending March 2026.

Manchester recorded the highest total number of motor vehicle theft offences, at 1,207, but its population-adjusted rate was 20.5 offences per 10,000 residents. Oldham ranks above Manchester on rate, despite recording fewer offences in total, because Manchester's much larger resident population spreads those offences across far more people. Total offences and offences per 10,000 residents are two different measurements, and they produce two different rankings.

Trafford recorded the largest year-on-year percentage increase among the ten boroughs analysed, at 9.1%, followed by Salford at 8.1%. Rochdale recorded the largest decrease, at 10.8%. Stockport recorded 417 offences, the second lowest total after Trafford.

These rates measure police-recorded motor vehicle theft offences relative to resident population. They do not measure thefts per registered vehicle, and they should not be read as the likelihood of any individual vehicle being stolen in a given borough.

Why Population Matters When Comparing Car Theft Hotspots

Imagine one borough records 1,000 vehicle thefts while another records 500. At first glance, the first appears twice as badly affected. But if the first has a population four times larger, residents of the second borough could actually experience a higher rate of vehicle theft relative to population.

For that reason, our study publishes both raw offence totals and a population-adjusted rate. The calculation is: recorded motor vehicle thefts ÷ population × 10,000. A rate of 28.0 per 10,000 residents means that 28 motor vehicle theft offences were recorded for every 10,000 people living in the borough during the year analysed.

Where Is Vehicle Theft Falling?

The Greater Manchester-wide figures provide encouraging evidence. GMP said overall vehicle-related crime was down by 27% when comparing September 2024 to March 2025 with the equivalent period one year earlier.

There are signs that targeted intervention can make a substantial difference at a more local level too. GMP reported in June 2026 that vehicle crime in Manchester city-centre car parks had fallen 38%, from 1,469 recorded offences during 2024 to 908 during 2025. Theft from motor vehicles fell 41%, while theft of vehicles and vehicle interference both fell 21%.

Source: GMP - Vehicle crime in Manchester city centre car parks sees significant reduction

GMP attributed the improvement to targeted and intelligence-led policing focused on prevention and enforcement. That provides an important lesson from the data: vehicle theft isn't necessarily an inevitable feature of living in an urban area. Prevention can make a difference.

Why Are Vehicles Still Being Stolen?

There isn't one single method responsible for every vehicle theft. Different vehicles have different vulnerabilities, and offenders can use different approaches depending on the vehicle, location and circumstances.

That's also why it can be misleading to look for one product that supposedly makes a vehicle impossible to steal. A more sensible approach is to make the vehicle increasingly difficult, time-consuming or risky to take.

Vehicle manufacturers provide built-in security. Owners may then choose additional measures such as sensible key storage, steering-wheel locks, tracking systems, immobilisation devices, CCTV or physical barriers. A driveway bollard sits within that wider approach.

Can Driveway Bollards Help Prevent Vehicle Theft?

A properly positioned driveway bollard can create a physical barrier between a parked vehicle and the road. If a thief manages to unlock and start a vehicle, they still need a clear route to remove it. A raised bollard positioned across that route creates an additional obstacle.

That doesn't mean a driveway bollard guarantees a vehicle cannot be stolen. The objective is to add another layer of security.

Physical Security Is Different From Electronic Security

One reason physical barriers can complement modern vehicle security is that they operate independently from the car. A telescopic bollard doesn't communicate with the vehicle, isn't connected to its key and doesn't depend upon the vehicle's software. When raised and locked, it is simply a physical obstruction.

What Greater Manchester Police Says About Vehicle Crime

GMP says its recent reduction in vehicle crime followed targeted operations in known hotspot areas, increased visible and covert patrols during peak offending times, and collaboration with local authorities, Community Safety Partnerships and neighbourhood watch schemes.

Source: Greater Manchester Police vehicle crime update

Our View

The figures tell two stories at the same time. The first is positive: recorded motor vehicle theft across Greater Manchester has fallen substantially. The second is that thousands of motor vehicles are still recorded as stolen or taken without authorisation each year.

For homeowners, we don't think that means becoming alarmed or turning a driveway into a fortress. It means thinking practically about security. There isn't a single measure that can guarantee a vehicle won't be stolen. The most sensible approach is to consider different layers that address different stages of a potential theft.

Andrew Walker
Secure Driveways

About This Research

Secure Driveways compiled this research using official police-recorded crime information published by Greater Manchester Police and the Home Office. The latest Home Office Community Safety Partnership open data currently runs to the year ending March 2026.

For the Greater Manchester-wide historical comparison used in this article, the figures are 8,243 offences in 2022/23, 6,714 in 2023/24 and 5,605 in 2024/25, based on the cited Greater Manchester Police disclosure.

Police-recorded crime represents offences recorded by the police and should not be interpreted as a complete measure of every incident that occurs