Examining the Factors That Differentiate a Car Key Burglary from a Regular Domestic Burglary

Abstract

Since the mandatory introduction in 1998 of electronic immobilisers in all vehicles, new cars are impossible to start without their keys. Some offenders have thus resorted to stealing car keys during domestic burglaries in order to steal the car — a relatively new phenomenon referred to as ‘car key burglaries’. With these crimes becoming an increasing problem in the UK, it is imperative that they are recorded accurately in order to identify the true scope of this problem and tackle it effectively. As yet, no universal definition of a car key burglary exists according to which all police constabularies can work, leading to inconsistencies in the recording of these types of crimes. Car key burglary data recorded by Northamptonshire Police was examined and analysed, and significant differences were found between car key and regular domestic burglaries. These differences pertained to the time of day at which the offence occurred, the neighbourhood in which the offence occurred and the search of the property by the offender. The implications of these findings are discussed, as well as limitations of the study, and possible directions for future research that may allow the police to record a domestic burglary more accurately as a car key burglary.