Barrhaven remains auto theft hot spot, and Ring cameras are no deterrent

Nada Alkhayyat woke up one Sunday morning back in August to some suspicious charges on her credit card, but little did she know that was just the start ofher worries.

Her daughter had forgotten her purse and Alkhayyat's Mastercard, which she'd borrowedin the family Jeep the night before.

When Alkhayyatstepped outside to retrieve it, there was no Jeep to be found.

"I came outside in my pyjamas and it was like, I'm dreaming," she recalled months later.

"My daughter, maybe she parked it somewhere else. Then yes, we found that it was stolen and [the thieves] did some transactions on my daughter's debit card and as well on my Mastercard."

It's really sad because even people who have security cameras, their cars are still being stolen.- Cherine Abourida, Barrhaven resident

The Jeep had been stolenfromthe family's driveway in the Half Moon Bay neighbourhood ofBarrhaven, a suburb about 15 kilometres southwest of Ottawa's downtown core.

Alkhayyat said the brazen theft left her family shaken.

"Suddenly it's like it's not safe for me and my kids, so this shouldn't be real," she said.

To make matters worse, Alkhayyat's doorbell camerafailed to catch the thieves in the act.

Ottawa police saidBarrhaven has become a hot spot for vehicle theftsandsecurity cameras aren't an effective deterrentbecause the signal jammers thievesuseto stealvehiclescan also halt recordings.

"So if we look at the video after the factwe see the car, we see a black spot and then we see the tail lights leaving the driveway," said Det. Doug Belanger, an investigator with the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) who specializes in auto theft.

'Target-rich environment'

Belanger said the concentration of thefts in Barrhaven is in part due to its geographic location.

"I think that it's largely due to proximity to the highway and the getaway to Montreal, which is where the vast majority of these vehicles go, and also because it's a target-rich environment," Belanger said.

"They'll come, they'll identify their targets often in advance, and then you'll seethree, four, five vehicles go in one night from one neighborhood."

Police saidOttawa's Orlans, Centretown and Glebe neighbourhoods have also been targeted.

In Alkhayyat's case, police managed to track down her Jeep atMontreal's port and return it to her before it could be shipped overseas for resale, but she and her neighbours remain on high alert.

CBC spoke to several homeowners in Barrhaven who are taking action by installing steering wheel locksand tracking devices on their vehicles.

Some, like Wally Adasi, are also installing cameras to alert them to any movement outside their homes.

"Honestly, just keep vigilant," he said.

Thefts driving up insurance

The federal government says an estimated 90,000 cars are stolen annually in Canada.

According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada,private auto insurers paid out $1.2 billion in theft claims in 2022 three times more than what was paid just four years earlier.

In Ontario alone, auto theft claims rose 329per cent overthat same time period.

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Brian Erwin, an insurance broker at McDougall Insurance in Ottawa and past president of the Auto Insurance Brokers Association, said premiums are going up as a result and the industry is placing restrictionson a number of "high-risk vehicles."

"Some companies are requiring high targets to have the tag system installed in their vehicle, or they add a $500 surcharge to the vehicle," Erwin said.

Insurance rates can vary by provider and depend onlocation, said Erwin, who explained the final calculation can bedeterminedbyhow many thefts have occurred in particular area.

"You could go to Company A and they had real bad losses in big bad Barrhaven, but they haven't had bad losses in Orlans, so the premiums will be different," he explained.

Those rate increases can sometimes take a while to kick in, Erwin said.

"Insurance rates are based on history, so if all the thefts are happening this year, it'll translate into premiums next year."

Cherine Abourida, who lives in Barrhaven and drives a 2019 Jeep Cherokee, said she was shocked when her insurance provider wanted to raise her rate by about $50 a month.

• Auto insurers pushing tracking systems amid jump in GTA vehicle thefts

"It was crazy and with the cost of everything else increasing, I couldn't afford paying $230 just for car insurance," Abourida said.

After shopping around,Abourida said she was able to find a better rate, but she worries about the future.

"It's really sad because even people who have security cameras, their cars are still being stolen."

Is policing the solution?

Ottawa police have not had a dedicated auto theft unit since 2017, when Deputy Chief Patricia Ferguson said a rise in shootings prompted a reorganization.

• Ottawa police struggling to stop surging car thefts

Some Barrhaven residents feel a stronger police presence could help ward off thieves, but Belanger said policing is only part of the solution.

He suggested vehicle owners do what they can to protect their property before a theft occurs.

"I don't imagine this is a problem that's going to go away, and I say that because the sheer profitability behind it means that it's worthwhile for these groups to continue to develop technology or strategies that are going to work around the solutions that we have right now," he said.

Ottawa Morning11:44Why Barrhaven has become a hot spot for auto theft

CBCs Robyn Miller explains how and why thefts are increasing in the south Ottawa suburb.