Brussels hit hardest by car break-ins, new figures show
Brussels leads Belgium in car break-ins, both in absolute numbers and in incidents per vehicle, according to recent data from the minister of the interior Bernard Quintin (MR), confirmed by BRUZZ using police statistics.
In 2023, nearly 40 per cent of all reported car break-ins in Belgium occurred in the Brussels Region, with the city of Brussels reporting the highest total (5,277 incidents), followed by Liège (3,677), Charleroi (2,357), Anderlecht (2,227) and Antwerp (2,136).
When adjusted for the number of registered vehicles, Saint-Gilles is the most severely affected municipality, with 1,116 break-ins per 10,000 vehicles, more than twice the rate of second-ranked Anderlecht (507). Eight of the ten worst-affected municipalities by this metric are in Brussels.
By contrast, Ganshoren, Sint-Agatha-Berchem and Sint-Pieters-Woluwe saw the fewest break-ins in the region. For perspective, the entire province of Limburg reported only 691 incidents in 2023.
Nationwide, car break-ins rose to 41,878 in 2023, up 8 per cent from 2022 and 25 per cent from 2020. Thieves most commonly stole handbags and cash, with Mercedes vehicles being disproportionately targeted, accounting for nearly 10 per cent of reports.
© PHOTO BELGIAN FREELANCE
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