As of this week, the Canada Border Providers Company is taking steps that might assist shut what some specialists name a loophole that has made it simpler for thieves to disguise stolen automobiles.
CBC Toronto has realized that as of Tuesday, CBSA has begun sharing some car export information with CARFAX and Équité Affiliation, and is exploring the potential of sharing it with different stakeholders, too.
It’s unclear precisely how CARFAX, an organization that gives car historical past stories, and Équité Affiliation, a non-profit insurance coverage fraud watchdog, can be utilizing the CBSA information, nevertheless it might sign enhancements in catching stolen automobiles.
Consultants say car identification numbers (VINs) on legally exported automobiles are extremely wanted by criminals, who clone the distinctive serial quantity — usually present in a number of places, together with the dashboard — and put it on a stolen car in Canada, often known as re-VINing. With no means for sellers, consumers or provincial ministries to confirm if a car has been exported, some well-disguised stolen automobiles have been slipping by way of the cracks undetected.
The Used Automotive Sellers Affiliation of Ontario has been calling on the CBSA for greater than a yr to make exported VIN info accessible. The group’s govt director says sharing the information with CARFAX is an efficient begin, although he says extra might be achieved to make the data accessible to others.
The ‘large’ drawback of re-VINing
Police and governments throughout the nation have been working to crack down on auto theft, which has ballooned in recent times. Between 2021 and 2023, it elevated by near a 3rd, reaching a excessive of 70,475 incidents, based on statistics from the Équité Affiliation. Policing and coverage efforts look like making a distinction, with automotive thefts down 18.6 per cent between 2023 and 2024.
Consultants say there are three principal makes use of for stolen automobiles. Some are illegally exported; others are taken aside and used for components. The remainder are re-VINed.
“The numbers are large. And we’re not seeing it simply restricted to passenger automobiles,” stated Det. Greg O’Connor with Peel Regional Police in Ontario.
O’Connor says that in simply the previous yr, his police power has investigated near 300 re-VINed automobiles, which additionally contains transport vans.
Cloning VINs from legally exported automobiles is the choice for criminals, says Bryan Gast, vice-president of investigative companies with Équité Affiliation.
“They know that that was a reliable VIN when it left, and the probability of it coming again to Ontario is extraordinarily distant,” stated Gast, who beforehand labored in legislation enforcement for 3 many years.
Det. Dan Kraehling, with Toronto Police, says criminals usually supply exported VINs by discovering on-line open supply import information from different international locations.
“[It’s] out of ease greater than something,” Kraehling stated. “They’ll pull them straight off of internet sites and use them for re-VINing functions.”
Some re-VINed stolen automobiles are utilized by criminals to commit different crimes, whereas others are offered, typically ending up within the palms of unsuspecting clients.
Fraud ‘can idiot even specialists’
Whereas there are sometimes indicators {that a} car may be stolen, Sam Cosentino says it “completely” occurs that sellers might be duped by stolen vehicles, even with due diligence.
“[These] are very elaborate frauds and may idiot even specialists available in the market and professionals within the market,” stated Cosentino, the director of enforcement on the Ontario Motor Car Business Council (OMVIC), which regulates car gross sales in Ontario.
Garry Letichever, proprietor of Toronto used automotive dealership Quest Auto Group, says he encounters fraudulent VINs on a close to weekly foundation. Whereas he has caught most, he says just a few have slipped by way of.
“Each time that occurs, I bleed. We take it very, very personally,” Letichever stated.
Lack of understanding about exported automobiles has made it simpler for thieves to clone their Car Identification Numbers, and disguise stolen automobiles in Canada. CBC’s Sarah MacMillan stories.
The client might ultimately find yourself having the automotive seized by police, and their insurance coverage deemed invalid, as soon as police uncover it’s the truth is a stolen car.
There’s a compensation fund administered by OMVIC, which supplies safety for patrons who purchase by way of a licensed supplier. However if you happen to purchase privately, you can be out of luck.
CBSA cites privateness considerations
James Hamilton, govt director of the Used Automotive Sellers Affiliation of Ontario, which represents almost 5,000 members, first contacted CBSA in April 2024, asking the federal company to share exported VIN info along with his affiliation.
Hamilton says his affiliation doesn’t need all exported VINs to be accessible publicly, however moderately as a software that sellers might use to look a selected VIN, to see if it’s a match to an exported car.
In responses to Hamilton final summer time in addition to earlier this month, the CBSA cited privateness considerations, and stated it considers VINs private info. Within the context of exports, the company stated exported VINs are thought-about customs info underneath the Customs Act, and can’t be shared.
Hamilton takes challenge with the privateness concern, a view shared by Cosentino, who stated it makes “completely no sense” to him.
“They’re a public show, and actually, your VIN is in your dashboard. That is accessible to anyone who walks by your automotive,” Cosentino stated.
In an announcement to CBC, Luke Reimer, a CBSA spokesperson, stated the “danger of fraud outweigh the potential advantages” of making a searchable database that might be used to test if a VIN had been exported.
Nevertheless Reimer stated the CBSA has begun to share “some VIN info” with CARFAX and Équité Affiliation, after working collectively to ” to allow a safe method to transmit this delicate info.”
CARFAX provides car historical past searches, beginning at $54.95 for a single search. In an e mail to CBC, the corporate stated its information sources are confidential, and wouldn’t verify the way it will use the CBSA information. The media relations director for Équité Affiliation additionally stated it couldn’t touch upon particular information utilization.
Reimer stated the primary transmission of that information occurred on Tuesday this week.
Hamilton stated he’s glad to listen to that some info is being shared, however argues his affiliation also needs to have entry, specifically so it will probably supply searches at low to no price for its members.
“Information is our good friend if we use it for good functions,” Hamilton stated.
Reimer stated CBSA is “exploring methods to responsibly share extra info with different stakeholders.”
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