The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Bahamian auto dealers yesterday urged Customs to crack down on wrecked and damaged car imports, warning that they were facilitating high levels of vehicle theft.

A Bahamas Motor Dealers Association (BMDA) spokesman said thieves were using the slips granted by Customs for wrecked vehicle imports to facilitate the licensing of cars, stolen in this nation, at the Road Traffic Department.

He added that the issue seemed to continually be “swept under the carpet”, despite it being consistently raised and all being aware of the problem.

The BMDA spokesman said auto theft trends seemed to be concentrating in right-hand drive, used cars. Many were being stolen for parts, given that those for older vehicles imported from Japan and the Far East were often hard to find in the Bahamas.

“The other area is where people buy wrecked cars in the US that are no longer allowed on the roads - they’re compromised in one way or another,” the spokesman said.

“They buy it at a cheap price, import it, and Customs gives them a slip to licence the vehicle that Road Traffic accepts. Why should a vehicle that in the US is not roadworthy be allowed to be licensed?”

The BMDA spokesman said the auto industry believed the Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) on wrecked imports were then being switched on to stolen cars in the Bahamas, which were then registered and licensed at Road Traffic.

“In effect, the car that was stolen disappears from view on New Providence, and the wreck is replaced by the stolen car,” the spokesman said, noting that there were 1,300-1,400 vehicle thefts in the Bahamas in 2012.

Noting that such high theft levels would impact insurance premiums for all auto owners, the BMDA spokesman added: “It’s another issue that year after year seems to get brushed under the carpet.”

Ben Albury, general manager at Bahamas Bus and Truck, added that the auto theft rate in the Bahamas was “way too high”. He added that two vehicles were stolen from the street he lives on last week.

In a statement issued yesterday, the BMDA said: “The used and wrecked vehicle imports deserve more scrutiny from law enforcement as they are suspected to be contributing to the very high theft rates of vehicles.

“Another item that the BMDA would like to see higher on the agenda is the authorisation of LoJack and similar vehicle tracking systems. Of course, these issues fall under numerous governmental agencies, including Finance, Customs and the Police, but we look forward to making some headway after these many years.”

The BMDA spokesman added that Lojack or some other vehicle tracking system was “vital to stem the tide”.