Altona North and Footscray are the two worst car theft hotspots in Hobsons Bay and Maribyrnong.
New data released by the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council (NMVTRC) shows 196 vehicles were stolen in Altona North in the four years from 2010.
The next-worst suburbs in Hobsons Bay were Laverton (160), Altona Meadows (149), Altona (145) and Williamstown (104).
Footscray recorded 443 vehicle thefts, followed by the suburb of Maribyrnong (221), West Footscray (207), Braybrook and Maidstone which each recorded 179, and Yarraville (137).
Across Hobsons Bay, 1056 cars, motorbikes and other vehicles were stolen from 2010 to the end of March 2014. The total number of thefts from the city of Maribyrnong was 1568.
NMVTRC executive director Ray Carroll said car models without an immobiliser were twice as likely to be stolen.
“Increasingly, cars are being stolen from the owner’s residence, either from the driveway or when parked outside overnight. In fact, this is now a bigger risk than parking in a large car park.
“If you have off-street parking, use it. If you have more than one car in the family and one is an older non-immobilised car, park an immobilised car behind it in the driveway.”
Mr Carroll said thieves were increasingly breaking into homes for car keys and transponders to steal a car. He said keeping keys out of sight could help reduce this type of theft.
