In Canada, a vehicle is stolen every five minutes. This national crisis is disrupting the lives of Canadians and causing significant distress and financial strain. From 2018 to 2023, auto theft losses surged over 254%, surpassing $1.5 billion in direct claims costs for private passenger vehicles. Ontario has been hit the hardest, with auto theft losses exceeding an alarming $1 billion last year alone. Part of the issue is that a growing number of stolen vehicles are rebranded and sold to unsuspecting customers in Canada through a practice known as reVINing.
Governments and law enforcement agencies have taken action to help address the auto theft crisis:
In May 2024, the federal government released the National Action Plan for Combatting Auto Theft, a thoughtful and comprehensive blueprint for tackling auto theft. The government has since taken several steps to halt stolen vehicles along the auto theft transportation network, including deploying a mobile X-ray scanner in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) to aid in the examination of shipping containers and investing $28 million to enhance the capacity of the Canada Border Services Agency.
Police forces across the country, in particular those in the GTA, have intensified their efforts to crack down on auto theft and associated criminal activities, including carjackings.
The Ontario government announced a commitment of $100 million to establish a provincial auto theft team, set up dedicated prosecutorial supports, and increase enforcement of violent thefts (such as carjackings) to a priority level. In addition, the government recently announced a $134 million investment to purchase five new police helicopters for use in the GTA and Ottawa to help fight auto theft and organized crime.
Government and law enforcement actions are welcome and will help reduce the incidence of auto theft over time.
However, the focus to date has largely been on preventing stolen vehicles from exiting the country. While important, halting the export of stolen vehicles cannot be the sole focus. A growing number of vehicles are stolen, rebranded, and sold to unsuspecting customers here in Canada through a practice known as ‘ReVINing’.
What is ReVINing?
A VIN (vehicle identification number) is a unique code assigned to every vehicle when it is manufactured. This 17-character code includes a serial number and other identifiers, providing information about the vehicle’s make, model, year and place of manufacture – it’s like a fingerprint for cars.
ReVINing is the process whereby criminals illegally and fraudulently alter the VIN of a stolen vehicle to conceal its identity, enabling the criminal to register and sell the vehicle to an unsuspecting buyer.
ReVINing is a sophisticated process that involves two critical steps:
Accessing a credible (albeit false) VIN: In Ontario, for example, a criminal could purchase a registrant identification number (RIN) history for a small fee, which would include sensitive information like VINs, making it easier for criminals to disguise stolen vehicles with legitimate-looking identifiers. A RIN is a unique number assigned to each vehicle owner in Ontario that tracks the vehicles they own or have owned.
Using the false VIN to register the vehicle: Criminals exploit procedural vulnerabilities at provincial registration authorities to fraudulently register the stolen vehicle.
How can two cars have the same VIN?
Provincial centres that administer vehicle registration, such as ServiceOntario, do not have a system that checks if a VIN already exists in other jurisdictions. This means a vehicle can be registered in one province with the same VIN as a vehicle registered in a different province. This loophole enables criminals to register stolen vehicles with a duplicated VIN, making it difficult to track and identify stolen cars across provincial borders.
Impact on consumers
The consumer risks associated with reVINing are significant. If the true identity of a reVINed vehicle is discovered, the unsuspecting buyer will have their vehicle seized and returned to the true owner, often with no recourse for financial compensation unless the vehicle was purchased from a licensed dealer. This not only affects the individual buyer but also drives up the cost of auto insurance for everyone. IBC estimates that in Ontario alone, auto theft added, on average, an extra $130 to drivers’ insurance premiums.
Tackling reVINing
While these issues are particularly pronounced in Ontario, similar issues persist in other provinces as well, compromising the integrity of vehicle registrations nationwide. Provincial governments can play a pivotal role in tackling reVINing by closing the loopholes that allow the exploitation of VINs. Specific measures worth considering include:
Eliminating public access to RINs: This will prevent criminals from easily obtaining detailed vehicle information.
Banning third-party VIN authorizations: Third-party registration allows someone other than the vehicle owner to complete the registration process on the owner’s behalf. While this process was initially intended for car dealers and dealerships, it inadvertently allows nearly any individual to transfer registration of a vehicle or register a vehicle in another person’s name. This is typically done for convenience, but criminals exploit third-party registration by using a fake identity to register a stolen vehicle. Restricting third-party authorization to individuals with power of attorney can reduce the number of fraudulent registrations.
Restricting the use of new vehicle information statement (NVIS) forms to licensed car dealers: Auto manufacturers produce an NVIS form to register new vehicles for the first time. However, NVIS forms are being forged and used to register vehicles with older model years. Restricting their use to dealers can eliminate this loophole.
The federal government also has a critical role to play. The National Action Plan for Combatting Auto Theft includes a commitment to combat reVINing, specifically by urging the provinces and territories to take action against fraudulent vehicle registrations. Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) is calling on the federal government to assume a leadership role in fostering better data-and information-sharing with provincial registries and closing the vehicle registration loopholes that criminals often exploit. Establishing a National VIN Registry can fill this gap and promote seamless information sharing between provincial VIN registries.
