Victoria launches searchable stolen vehicle database, two years after Queensland

Car theft has been surging in Victoria, leading the state to launch a new publicly searchable stolen vehicle database – two years after Queensland did the same.

Now live on the Victoria Police website , you can search by a vehicle’s registration number, make or model to confirm if a vehicle has been stolen.

The search results will also confirm the date a vehicle was reported stolen and the suburb it was stolen from.

As of the time of writing this article, the database lists 1572 vehicles as being stolen, including not only cars but also motorcycles and other registered vehicles. Search results only list vehicles reported stolen within the last 90 days.

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Victoria Police advises that if your registration search doesn’t return a match but the vehicle still appears suspicious, you should try searching by make or model as the registration plate on the vehicle may have been substituted.

If a vehicle doesn’t appear in the database but you still believe it to be stolen, you can contact the Police Assistance Line on 131 444 or make an anonymous report to Crime Stoppers.

Victoria Police says you shouldn’t approach or interfere with a vehicle suspected as being stolen.

Queensland launched its stolen vehicle database in 2024, and you can also search it using a vehicle’s registration number, make or model. However, while it’s refreshed daily, it only includes vehicles reported as stolen within the last 28 days.

No states besides Victoria and Queensland have publicly searchable stolen vehicle databases, although states such as Tasmania have online search tools that will confirm if a vehicle is registered and reported as stolen.

For a $2.00 fee, you can also check whether a vehicle has been stolen, written off or is free from debt nationwide, via the Australian Financial Security Authority's Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR), a paid service run by the federal government.

Around 32,000 vehicles were stolen in Victoria last year, the highest number for a calendar year since 2001, in stark contrast to lower theft rates across the rest of the country.

Car theft increased by almost 100 per cent over the past three years alone. Victoria Police says that within the state, more than 10,000 vehicles are now stolen annually by thieves using electronic devices, such as key cloners.

MORE: Expert Insights: Q&A with car security professional John Savino MORE: The troubling numbers behind Victoria's car theft crisis