Storage and Transport
Trackers and Immobilisers Against the Theft Statistics
Tracked vehicles are recovered at over 95 per cent against 40 per cent untracked, and one 2025 national figure is 13.18. The device costs 400 to 800 to fit.
Tracking is usually presented to a supercar owner as an insurance requirement rather than as a choice, which obscures how large the underlying numbers are. Vehicles fitted with an approved tracker are reported recovered at over 95 per cent against about 40 per cent for those without, and one national figure for 2025 puts overall recovery at 13.18 per cent.
The recovery figures, including where they disagree
| Population | Recovery rate | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Fitted with an approved tracker | over 95 % | 95 % within 24 hours on 2024 data |
| Without a tracker | about 40 % | quoted as the comparison figure |
| National average, 2025 | 13.18 % | all stolen vehicles |
The 40 and 13.18 per cent figures are both presented as untracked or general recovery and they are 26.8 points apart. They are not measuring the same population: one is a comparison figure quoted alongside tracker performance, the other a national average across every stolen vehicle including those never seriously pursued. Using either as the baseline changes the case below, so both are carried through.
One further published figure explains why the response matters as much as the device. If a vehicle is not located within the first four hours, the chance of recovering it in one piece is described as dropping by more than 60 per cent. Category S5 systems benefit from the highest priority police response, which is what the higher specification is actually buying.
What the device costs
Published costs for the tracking commonly required on cars of this value are 400 to 800 GBP to install and 200 to 400 a year to subscribe. At midpoints that is 600 once and 300 a year, so 2,100 across five years.
The case in expected value
Insurance means an owner rarely bears the full loss, but the exposure is real: an excess, a settlement dispute, the loss of a car that cannot be replaced with money, and the premium consequences afterwards. Setting that aside and taking the simplest version, on a car worth 200,000 with an assumed annual theft probability of 1 in 39, which is a published figure for one heavily targeted luxury marque rather than a general rate:
| Situation | Recovery rate | Expected annual loss |
|---|---|---|
| Tracked | 95 % | 256 |
| Untracked, at the 40 % figure | 40 % | 3,077 |
| Untracked, at the 13.18 % figure | 13.18 % | 4,452 |
Against a subscription of 300 a year, the difference between the tracked line and the two untracked ones is 2,821 and 4,196. Even if the theft probability used here is several times too high for a specific car and address, the ordering does not change, which is the useful part of the calculation.
Why a tracker is not a lock
A tracker does not prevent theft. It changes what happens afterwards, which is why the sensible arrangement is layered rather than singular.
- An immobiliser prevents the drive away, and on cars targeted through keyless entry systems this is the layer that addresses the actual method.
- A tracker addresses recovery, and category S5 systems expect a driver identification tag so that movement without it is treated as unauthorised.
- Physical security addresses opportunity, and storage in a locked building is separately a condition of some cover.
- Insurance addresses the money, and it is the only layer that responds when the other three have failed.
The layer most often missing is the second one working as intended. Fitting a category S7 device where a policy names S5 is the same as not fitting one, and that distinction is examined after a theft rather than before it.
Questions readers ask
Does a tracker reduce the risk of car theft?
It mainly changes the outcome rather than the risk. Vehicles with an approved tracker are reported recovered at over 95 per cent, with 95 per cent recovered within 24 hours on 2024 data, against about 40 per cent for untracked vehicles.
Why do the untracked figures differ so much?
They describe different populations. The 40 per cent is quoted as the comparison against tracker performance, while a national average across all stolen vehicles for 2025 is given as 13.18 per cent. The two are 26.8 points apart.
What does tracking cost?
Published costs are 400 to 800 GBP to install and 200 to 400 a year to subscribe, so about 600 once and 300 a year at midpoints, or 2,100 across five years.
Does it pay for itself?
On the arithmetic, comfortably. At an assumed 1 in 39 annual theft probability on a 200,000 car, expected loss is about 256 tracked against 3,077 at the 40 per cent recovery figure, a difference of 2,821 against a 300 subscription.
How quickly does it have to work?
Very quickly. If a vehicle is not located within four hours, the chance of recovering it in one piece is described as falling by more than 60 per cent. Category S5 systems attract the highest priority police response.
Is a tracker enough on its own?
No. It addresses recovery rather than prevention. An immobiliser addresses the drive away, particularly on cars targeted through keyless systems, and physical security addresses opportunity.
Sources
- Lock and Track, vehicle recovery success rates UK, for the over 95 per cent tracked recovery rate, the 95 per cent within 24 hours on 2024 data, the 40 per cent untracked comparison, the 13.18 per cent national figure for 2025 and the four hour window.
- QuoteGoat, Ferrari insurance costs in the UK, for the Thatcham category S5 or S7 requirement and the 400 to 800 GBP installation and 200 to 400 GBP annual subscription costs.