Why are French car models most targeted for thefts of parts?

More than 95,000 thefts of accessories from vehicles were recorded in France in 2025, with headlights, catalytic converters, wheels and increasingly sophisticated electronic equipment among the targets.

The figure was down 1% on 2024 numbers, but the theft of car parts remains a widespread problem. Stolen components can be sold online, offered to garages or broken down for the value of the materials they contain.

Popular models are particularly attractive because there is a large pool of potential buyers looking for their parts.

The Renault Clio is among the models frequently targeted for parts, while Peugeot and Citroën vehicles are also attractive because of the number of them on French roads.

This fits a wider pattern in vehicle theft. The most stolen cars in France are often those in high demand on the resale market, according to Argos and France Assureurs.

Their 2025 figures recorded 64,088 vehicle thefts, down 9% on the previous year. The Toyota RAV4 V was the most stolen model, followed by the Hyundai Tucson IV, Toyota C-HR, Renault Mégane IV and Renault Talisman. 

The figures were presented in February, based on claims reported by 55 insurance companies representing about 99% of the French motor insurance market.

The same supply-and-demand logic applies to individual parts: a common car provides a ready market for components that can be difficult or expensive to obtain legitimately.

Headlights, wheels and catalytic converters

Headlights are among the most commonly stolen components, followed by catalytic converters and wheels.

Catalytic converters have traditionally been targeted for the precious metals they contain, including platinum, palladium and rhodium. 

Their value has made them attractive to organised thieves, although newer converters generally contain smaller quantities of these metals and can be harder to access.

More recently, thieves have also targeted reversing cameras and other electronic equipment as the value of replacement parts has increased.

Stolen components can be advertised on marketplaces such as Leboncoin as second-hand parts or items recovered from damaged vehicles. Some are sold for substantially less than legitimate replacement parts.

A structured black market

Argos president Benoît Leclerc told Franceinfo that the trade had become increasingly organised.

“Social networks amplify the phenomenon,” he said, with buyers able to use platforms such as Telegram to request specific parts.

The trade can involve thieves, storage sites, mechanics, transporters and dealers. Some stolen components remain in France, while others are exported to other countries where the demand is also high.

A 2020 investigation by the Nantes research section of the gendarmerie and the central office for tackling travelling crime dismantled a network specialising in car-part theft.

The group targeted BMW and Mercedes vehicles at dealerships and garages. Some of the stolen parts were transported by road to Georgia and sold to car-part dealers, while others were reused in France.

Investigators attributed 31 offences to the network, with losses of over €600,000.