Anand asks Ontario counterpart for a meeting to discuss growing problem of fraudulent car registrations

Federal Transport Minister Anita Anand is requesting a meeting with her provincial counterpart to tackle the rising issue of re-Vinning and fraudulent vehicle registrations.

In a letter sent to Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria on Saturday, Anand wrote that she wants all provinces and territories to prioritize the issue to further prevent auto thefts across the country.

Re-Vinning is when criminals illegally fabricate the vehicle identification number (VIN) of a car to conceal that it was stolen, enabling them to register and sell it. Due to the lack of interprovincial data sharing, criminals can register a vehicle with the same VIN as a vehicle registered in a different province.

“Law enforcement agencies across the country are reporting that re-vinning and fraudulent registrations, pervasive issues that facilitate the sale and distribution of stolen vehicles, are on the rise,” Anand wrote in the letter.

“While the longstanding Interprovincial Record Exchange can assist in detecting the re-vinning of vehicles, all provinces and territories need to participate fully in this system to close the loophole that is being exploited by criminals to re-sell stolen vehicles within Canada.”

According to the government, the Interprovincial Record Exchange (IRE) is a tool used for the “efficient exchange” of driver’s licence and vehicle information between jurisdictions.

Earlier this year, the federal government and other stakeholders developed the National Action Plan on Combatting Auto Theft, and part of it is investments to allow comprehensive data sharing through the IRE.

In May, Pablo Rodriguez, the previous federal transport minister, wrote a letter to his provincial and territorial counterparts to step up in addressing the issue.

Anand, in her letter on Saturday, asked Sarkaria to respond to Rodriguez’s letter.

“I appreciate your response to my predecessor, which committed to working together on this issue. I would like to discuss this important matter with you and hear what your province is doing in more detail,” she wrote, adding that her team will reach out and coordinate a meeting.

Anand highlighted in her letter that the federal auto theft action plan has produced encouraging results, with national auto theft trends seeing a decline in the first half of the year.

Border officials have also intercepted more than 1,900 stolen vehicles this year, nearly a third in the Greater Toronto Area.

“Auto theft is a national crisis that impacts thousands of Canadian households every year. As our government has reiterated, all relevant parties need to be at the table to combat this issue,” the transport minister wrote.

“We have seen positive results, but we must continue to be vigilant and collectively take strong action to keep Canadians safe and protect our communities.”

CP24 has reached out to Minister Sarkaria for comment.

The Ontario government announced in May that it was investing $51 million in new measures to help police crack down on auto theft criminals. The province also said it purchased five new police helicopters to prevent violent carjackings.