THE standard of security on modern cars is now incredibly high. But that just means car thieves are turning to new tricks to steal high value business cars. And the most common target is the car keys themselves.

TRACKER, a stolen vehicle tracking and recovery systems specialist, said that the percentage of vehicles it recovered that were stolen using the owner’s keys had worryingly gone up to 80% in quarter one of 2010, from 74% at the end of last year.

In quarter one 2010 the top three most commonly stolen and recovered models remained unchanged when compared to 2009 with the BMW X5 at the top (pictured above), followed by Land Rover’s Range Rover and the BMW M3.

However, the Audi TT slipped down the popularity ladder and the Land Rover Defender took its place, pushing the Audi RS4 down to sixth in TRACKER’s top 10 most stolen and recovered league.

“While our top 10 features prestige brands, this doesn’t tell the whole story, as thieves will target vehicles across a range of values, especially as today’s market means car buyers are looking for bargains,” commented Stephen Doran, managing director, TRACKER.The highest value stolen vehicle recovery in quarter one by TRACKER was a Mercedes CL63 AMG worth £120,000, whilst the lowest value vehicle recovered was a Ford Sierra worth £1,000.

Doran continued: “The recession is taking its toll on thieves too and we have seen them adjust their targets to suit buyers, making lower value vehicles just as valuable to them as the fancy sports cars.”

TRACKER said that London remained the hot spot for thefts with Essex and Greater Manchester in second and third – no change from 2009. However, West Yorkshire and the West Midlands were both prime targets this time last year, but have been replaced by Kent and Surrey. South Yorkshire, Bedfordshire, Nottinghamshire, Birmingham and Cheshire also saw a high level of theft and recovery in the first quarter of 2010.

“Once again our latest stolen vehicle recovery figures reveal that thieves are willing to consider any region as well as any vehicle,” added Doran.

TRACKER said that, by using its electronic homing device hidden on the car, it had recovered over £22 million worth of vehicles in 2009.

“Vehicle theft is still a very real threat and it is more important than ever that people protect themselves and their vehicles by keeping their keys safe at all times. In addition, having a tracking device fitted vastly improves the chances of recovering a stolen vehicle, helping to reduce financial and emotional heartache,” Mr Doran said.

Top 10 cars most frequently stolen and recovered

• 1 BMW X5

• 2 Land Rover Range Rover

• 3 BMW M3

• 4 Audi Rs4

• 5 Audi A4

• 6 Audi TT

• 7 BMW 5 Series

• 8 Mercedes-Benz CLK

• 9 Mercedes-Benz SLK

• 10 Audi Q7

• Source: TRACKER