Catalytic converter theft from cars isn’t a new crime, but it has increased significantly in recent times.
Police forces around the UK are advising owners of any car fitted with a catalytic converter to take precautions. In Toyota’s case it is second and third-generation Prius models (2004-2009 and 2009-2016 respectively) and second-generation Auris Hybrids (2012-2018) which have been particular targets for thieves.
Below we’ve gathered the best advice for Toyota owners who may be concerned.
What is a catalytic converter?
The catalytic converter is part of the car’s emissions control system. It cleans up the exhaust gases before they are expelled from the car through the exhaust pipe. Its internal elements react with the gases, breaking them down into less harmful substances and water vapour. All new cars sold in Europe since 1993 have had to be fitted with a catalytic converter by law.
Why are they a target for thieves?
Clearly the police are best placed to offer advice on the motives behind this crime. But we understand that the value of the catalytic converter for recycling is the main attraction to thieves, because it contains precious metals such as rhodium, platinum and palladium.
What can owners do to stop their cars being targeted?
Some owners have chosen to tag their catalytic converters with an invisible yet traceable forensic marking solution, such as that provided by SmartWater. This means that a stolen catalytic converter can be traced to a specific crime, helping police in their attempts to fight the organised gangs responsible. It also raises the risk to all those handling the devices along the criminal chain, from theft to eventual disposal and recycling. Mechanical theft prevention products such as Catloc devices can also deter thieves.
However, it must be noted that catalytic converter theft is a criminal operation and the scope of owners is therefore limited. Police forces are taking action, so it is important for anyone who is a victim of this crime to report it as quickly as possible.
In the main, older cars are more likely to be targeted. This is because advances in efficiency and technology mean the latest generations of catalytic converters contain vastly lower amounts of precious metals, while still doing their job just as well or even better. This means their value for recycling is very low and they are not attractive to thieves.
Does a mechanical lock give my car 100% protection from thieves?
Sadly not. It can make theft more difficult but thieves are using high-powered cutting tools to remove catalytic converters and because of this it is not possible to make them ‘unstealable’. A mechanical locking device makes it harder to steal a catalytic converter because it slows down thieves and therefore acts as a deterrent.
If I’m worried about my Toyota model, what should I do?
If you are worried about potential catalytic converter theft from your Toyota, we recommend you use our locator tool to find your nearest Toyota centre and contact them to discuss the best way to protect your car.
This article was last updated on 2 November 2024, so some of the responses to reader comments below have been superseded by more recent information.
I purchased approved Auris 2014 from Toyota and arrived 29th Wednesday. No one mention that my car can be the target.
Without knowing this problem I was searching Alarm system and found this article!
I count myself lucky because I read this post day after I purchased (30th) and straight I went to private garage to fit Catloc Clamp and shield also. When I arrived to garage there were 3 more cars there for same reason (Hyundai and Toyota Prius). I paid £250 total to secure catalytic converter with steel wire and shield cover.
I understand this is not manufacture fault but letting know customer about this problem is Toyota’s main responsibility.
Hi there,
Thanks for your comment.
Through publishing police advice online and writing both to our dealer network to brief customers and directly to customers themselves where details were available to do so, we have tried to ensure that as many customers as possible are aware of this crime.
Please be aware that we are constantly assessing the situation and working hard to provide the best support for our customers.
We are sorry for any distress this may have caused and will continue to monitor the situation closely.
Thanks.
Nonsense!
Had our cat stolen today in broad daylight. Our car was in for service and recall less than a month ago at Toyota dealer in Nottingham and no mention of issue attempted. Lost all faith in Toyota
Hi Janie,
Thanks for your comment. We’re really sorry to hear that your vehicle has been affected by this crime.
If you would like to discuss your situation further, we would recommend contacting our customer relations team, who are best placed to offer any necessary support and advice.
They can be contacted, here: https://www.toyota.co.uk/help-centre/email-us
Once again, we are truly sorry for any distress this crime has caused.
Thanks.
Hi Toyota, I had my cat converter stolen during the night and so did a few other cars on our road. I have read through the comments and you have said you have tried to inform customers about this issue, but I do not think this is true. I knew nothing about it until that dreadful noice came from my car and I had to research it online.
I have thereafter read horror stories about how expensive insurance is, how your excess will increase massively and if it happens a few times it’s virtually impossible to insure your car. If this keeps going on no one will be wanting to own a hybrid anymore, which is a real shame. Personally I am debating what to do as I won’t be able to afford my car insurance cost tripling. My excess is already £500 so it will be very expensive for me already now.
Hope Toyota will start taking responsibility for this, both influencing so that it becomes much harder to sell these metals and helping victims.
Thank you,
Hi Malin,
Thanks for getting in touch. We’re extremely sorry to hear you’ve been a victim of this crime, and we’re working hard to support all affected customers.
We have published police advice online and written to our dealer network to brief customers and even to customers themselves where details have been available to do so in order to make sure that as many customers as possible are aware of this crime.
We have also engaged with the Home Office, Local MPs, the Met Police and the Assistant Constable of Cheshire Police to raise the crime’s profile and identify any legislation issues and have developed CatLocs, tilt alarms, bolt caps and component etching to help prevent customers from further attacks.
However, criminals using high-grade power tools are difficult for any manufacturer to completely protect against.
Once again, we are sorry for any distress this may have caused, and we will continue to constantly assess the situation in order to offer the best support to our customers.
Thanks.
I’m in the exact same situation as you. Last October my catalytic converter got stolen, and I’ve only just found this web page as I’ve had an incredibly busy year. Cat got stolen and so I got a new one fitted, of course my insurance goes up because it’s a claim! Through no fault of my own, parking the car in a well let (daylight 9-5pm) area with CCTV (Park and ride 15 ft from the bus stop)
After getting the car back I called Toyota to ask about this Catloc, they tell me that will be £250. I say how upset I am about all this but they make no effort to make it right. I ask about getting the hybrid battery checked. “That would be a good idea sir, that will be another £40”. It’s unbelievable. So, same as you I’m going to have to sell as I can’t justify giving business to a company that cares nothing for customers. My mother got a Toyota on my recommendation around a year after I got mine. Pointless. I can’t park my car at a park and ride without fear of having to pay out of my pocket some £500! To (half) protect the catalytic converter, pay insurance, get car fixed and back on the road. All for something that Toyota designed. Every other car brand is safe! Ridiculous.
Hi Alex,
Thanks for your comment. We’re really sorry to hear you’ve been affected by this crime and that you were unhappy with the service you received.
Please be aware that we are working hard to support all customers experiencing this crime and are constantly monitoring the situation.
We published police advice online on the crime as soon as possible, wrote to our dealer network and even directly to customers where details were available to do so in order to ensure that as many customers as possible are aware.
We have also taken steps such as engaging with the Home Office, Local MPs, the Met Police and the Assistant Constable of Cheshire Police to raise the profile of the crime and identify current legislation issues.
As previously mentioned, due to the precious metals they contain, any car containing a catalytic converter is at risk of theft. We have taken action to develop deterrents such as CatLocs, tilt alarms, bolt caps and component etching to help protect customers from attacks, but criminals with high-grade power tools can be very difficult to stop.
Once again, we are very sorry for any distress this has caused. If you would like to raise this issue further, you can contact our customer relations team, here: https://www.toyota.co.uk/help-centre/email-us
They are best placed to discuss your situation in more detail and offer support in any way we can.
Thanks.
I have just had my second catalytic converter stolen was thinking of getting a catloc fitted after the first time,but then COVID-19 lockdown happened and before I could arrange anything the second one was stolen. Now I hear catlocs are not a deterrent I will be taking the advice of the police and sell my Auris and steer clear of Toyota altogether as it has now cost me me over £1000 and have had to cancel my holiday
Hi John,
Thanks for getting in touch. We’re sorry to hear that you’ve been affected by this crime.
We have taken action over time to produce CatLocs, tilt alarms, bolt caps and component etching to help protect customers from further attacks, although criminals with high-grade power tools can be very difficult to stop.
We are constantly monitoring the situation and doing all that we can to support customers who have been victims of this crime.
If you would like to raise this issue further, you can contact our customer relations team, who are best placed to discuss your situation in more detail, here: https://www.toyota.co.uk/help-centre/email-us
Once again, we are sorry for any distress this has caused.
Thanks.
Hi Toyota Uk,
I have been a Toyota owner for 12 years and previously had an Auris Deisel, reg 2007, for nine years which I truly loved, until in 2017 when I purchased a very lovely Auris Hybrid from the Toyota dealership. I love my car and have been more than happy with it for the last three years. However I had no idea of the problem lurking, just waiting to be uncovered. Yesterday morning I was abruptly introduced to it, when my catalytic converter was stolen from my car.
I discovered it in the morning when I went out to drive to the shops. The horrendous noise coming from the engine made me think that something serious had happened to it in the twelve hours since I’d last driven it. I have never heard such a noise coming from a car before. It was only when a neighbour messaged me to say that their Toyota had been the target of a cat converter theft and I messaged him back, did I understand what was wrong with my car. I am devastated, and the stress and worry is horrible not to mention the ensuing problems and inconvenience that this is causing and will cause. I am retired and don’t have spare money to fork out on this kind of thing. No one told me this was a possibility when I bought the car. On top of that as I have researched I find that many people are saying that as soon as they get their car back from repair which can take as much as 8 weeks or more, it is targeted again pretty much straight away and that the cat box does nothing to stop them. Having stumbled on this blog today and reading more of other people’s experiences on top of what I read yesterday on the Internet, and reading your replies to the people’s posts, I am further dismayed. Your reply to most, if not all, are pretty much exactly the same give or take a sentence or two. I find this unacceptable and I think if Toyota want to keep their long time earned reputation and their customers, they need to do something super quick or their very loyal customers will definitely be walking and spending their money with another car manufacturer. Me included. I feel my car is tainted and the enormous joy that I took in it has fast dissipated to zero since yesterday. I had always thought Toyotas were brilliant cars and also that the customer service was second to none. I have recommended them numerous times to many many people friends and acquaintances. But I will not be doing so anymore. I can’t wait to get rid of the car that I really really did love and that I thought would last me some years yet, and buy something that is less of a target for such crimes. I am very disillusioned and disappointed in Toyotas lack of input to the customers to try and resolve this issue which is a design issue. I have heard that Honda cars are also prime targets but that Honda are addressing the problem by redesigning where the cat converter goes on their new cars which will make it virtually impossible for thieves to steal. Toyota needs to address this issue and promptly and it also needs to retro design something that will rectify this in the current cars that are being sold and those that are just a few years old like mine.
Sam2014
Hi Sam,
Thanks for getting in touch. We’re extremely sorry to hear that your Auris has been targeted by criminals.
Would you like to be put in contact with our customer relations team directly? They are best placed to offer support in any way we can.
You can contact them, here: https://www.toyota.co.uk/help-centre/email-us
Once again, we are sorry for any distress this has caused.
Thanks.
Hi,
I have my cat converter stolen from Auris hybrid TS 5 weeks ago. The car is in garage for 3 weeks and repairer has said that the cat converter is on back order from Toyota. It might take weeks or months to come from Toyota manufacturer.
What is Toyota doing as a company to deter criminals from this crime?? Why isnt a cat lock not fitted as standard? Also why was there warning about such crime associated with buying a hybrid car as it is frustrating to have to pay for excess and expect expensive premium from insurers next time.
Usman
Hi Usman,
Thanks for getting in touch with us. We’re sorry to hear that your vehicle has been targeted by thieves.
We published police advice on the crime online as soon as it was available, wrote to our dealer network and even directly to our customers where details were available to do this. We also engaged with the Home Office, Local MPs, the Met Police and the Assistant Constable of Cheshire Police, who is also the national lead for vehicle crime, to raise the crime’s profile and identify and issues with existing legislation.
We have also taken action over time to produce CatLocs, tilt alarms, bolt caps and component etching to help protect customers from further attacks, and these are supplied at zero profit. However, determined criminals with high-grade power tools can be very difficult to stop.
We are constantly monitoring the situation and doing all that we can to support affected customers.
If you would like to raise this issue further, you can contact our customer relations team, who are best placed to discuss your situation in more detail, here: https://www.toyota.co.uk/help-centre/email-us
Once again, we are sorry for any distress this has caused.
Thanks.
I wish I hadn’t of purchased my Auris Hybrid. Toyota need to fit these as standard or make you aware your car is at risk when buying one. Had my cat convertor stolen the other day. Insurance company not interested in fitting me a lock. Cannot wait to sell my hybrid and buy a different brand of car.
Hi Simon,
Thanks for your comment. We’re sorry to hear your vehicle has been targeted by thieves.
We published police advice on the crime as soon as possible, wrote to our dealer network to brief customers and even to customers themselves where details were available to do so.
We are also producing CatLocs and supplying these at zero profit along with other deterrent devices, although criminals with high-grade power tools are very hard to stop.
Due to the precious metals contained within catalytic converters, any car containing one is in theory at risk of theft.
If you would like to raise this issue further, you can contact our customer relations team, who are best placed to discuss your situation in more detail, here: https://www.toyota.co.uk/help-centre/email-us
Once again, we are sorry for any distress this has caused.
Thanks.
Toyota and all drivers should lobby their MPs and the Govt to introduce new legislation to increase penalty for Cat crime. 30 years prison for the thieves and their crooked scrap metal dealers would be a good deterrent.
Deterrence works.
Proof: recent downgrading of cash machine theft using JCB diggers, from ‘robbery’ (5 years prison) to lesser crime of ‘theft’ (2 years prison) has led to big rise in such crime.
Hi GA,
Thanks for your comment.
We have engaged with the Home Office, Local MPs, the Met Police and the Assistant Constable of Cheshire Police, who is also the national lead for vehicle crime, in order to raise the profile of the crime and identify issues with existing legislation.
We have also taken action over time to produce CatLocs, tilt alarms, bolt caps and component etching to help protect customers from further attacks, although criminals with high-grade power tools are not easy to stop.
Thanks.
I seem to be having difficulty even leaving a comment – so have had to use the reply option.
I have had my CC stolen and fortunately found this site with all the problems people are having.
I am now worried that the garage used by the insurer will not fit a CC that will accommodate a cat lock.
So I just called my local dealership – I was told to call back on Monday because there was no-one there who could help me.
I’m not sure how I am supposed to look after patients and keep calling various mechanics to weigh up my options.
As with other people nothing had been said to me when visiting the local dealership for services etc.
This is overall really poor service from Toyota.
Hi Joanne,
Thanks for your comment. We’re sorry to hear that your car has been targeted by thieves.
Our centres will not know which catalytic converter the insurer’s garage chooses to fit and therefore whether or not it will be able to accommodate a CatLoc, so this would need to be confirmed directly with the insurer’s garage.
Is there anything we can do to help?
Thanks.
Just thought I’d try and save some people some cash in that the ‘thieving sods’ are sawing right through cat locks with powered tooling.
Its a disgrace that the police are just not able to deal with this issue but underfunded etc etc.Thieves have also targeted honda jazz,mercs and bmws too.What a way for these scumbags to make a living.
Hello @toyotaUK, you’ve mentioned that you’ ve produced CAT locs and tilt alarms. Has Toyota UK taken steps in the possibility of retrofitting their (thatcham category 2) cars with Thatcham category 1 alarm (with tilt sensors)? Is this a possibility?
Hi GS,
Thanks for getting in touch.
We don’t have any information on this currently.
There is the possibility to have this carried out as an aftermarket modification, but as this is not a Toyota service we cannot comment further.
Thanks.
I had my Cat Converter stolen about four weeks or so ago, my insurer did not pay to fit an original, so I now have a universal Cat Converter, therefore the Cat Loc at my local Toyota was not able to be fitted, they also refused to do the Tilt Sensor alarm… I have had to go to another private garage to have a Cat Guard fitted along with the Tilt Sensor alarm, ended up cost me over £600 plus the insurance excess and £160 to have a new piece of exhaust pipe put on… all up close to £1000 plus being without my car for a week or so… not to mention my insurance will go up next year…. Don’t count on your insurance company putting an original Toyota Cat Converter.. Lesson learnt the hard way….
I am wondering what is the theft rate on 2020 Corola models, I have gathered with less precious metals they are less susceptible
Hi Alan,
We only make Catlocs for cars that are being targeted, and the new Corolla isn’t one of them.
Thanks
Hi Pauline,
Thanks for your comment. We’re sorry to hear your car has been targeted by thieves and about the issues you have had with your insurer.
It is up to the insurer which parts they decide to fit to a car, and we would therefore recommend taking this up with them if you wish to discuss it further.
Thanks.
Had my CC stolen from Toyota Auris 2015 from Hospital car park at Grantham. Looks like a common problem in UK. Time to be away from Toyota cars
Hi Shashi,
Thanks for your comment. We’re sorry to hear that your vehicle has been affected by this crime.
As catalytic converters contain precious metals, any car containing one is in theory at risk of theft.
Over time, we have developed CatLocs and other deterrent devices to try and protect customers from further attacks, although criminals with high-grade power tools are not easy to stop.
We have also published police advice on the crime as soon as possible, written to our dealer network and even directly to customers where we had details to do so.
If you would like to discuss your situation further, we would recommend contacting our customer relations team as they are best placed to explore this in more detail.
You can contact them, here: https://www.toyota.co.uk/help-centre/email-us
Once again, we are sorry for any distress this has caused.
Thanks.