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Business Vehicles In The Crosshairs

ARTICLE BY

  • Eugene Herbert
  • CEO
  • MasterDrive

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Recent data from Tracker’s Vehicle Crime Index paints a concerning picture for South African businesses. Analysis of statistics from January to June 2025, drawn from more than 1.1 million subscriptions, reveals that business-owned vehicles are 48% more likely to be targeted by criminals than personally owned vehicles.

Additionally, business vehicles experience 32% more crime within the Tracker base. Other data revealed that 57% of these incidents occurred in Gauteng, while Mpumalanga emerged as a new hotspot. Incidents are increasingly occurring during weekdays rather than weekends – precisely when vehicles are used for business.

This is a significant shift in the pattern of vehicle crime.  Eugene Herbert, CEO of MasterDrive, says: “Evolution in criminal tactics demands an equally evolved response from employers. Companies can no longer afford to view vehicle security as only a matter of technology and tracking systems.”

Human behaviour matters

“While these technologies are important, they represent only one layer of safety,” says Herbert. “Employee situational awareness is a critical frontline defence against vehicle crime. Businesses must prioritise comprehensive upskilling that teaches employees to recognise threats, assess risk in different environments, and make split-second decisions that could save their lives.”

Teaching employees to always operate with situational awareness reduces their potential exposure to suspicious behaviour, helps them recognise when they are being followed, and equips them with the know-how of how to react in this scenario. “This includes awareness of vulnerable locations such as driveways, traffic intersections, and parking areas where carjacking is most common.

“When employees face greater risk, it is a critical skill to understand the importance of varying routes, remaining alert to surroundings and avoiding distractions, while trusting one’s instincts when something feels wrong.”

Training for tricky situations

Even the most comprehensive situational awareness training, however, cannot guarantee complete protection. “Criminals are sophisticated and brazen in their methods, quickly adapting to more lucrative targets. For this reason, it is essential that safety programmes include hijack extraction training.

“When prevention fails, knowing how to safely extract oneself from the vehicle is paramount,” says Herbert. “Human life is infinitely more valuable than any vehicle or cargo. Employees need clear, practised protocols to safely remove themselves from the situation and significantly reduce the risk of violence.”

This training transforms panic into practised response, potentially saving lives. “South Africa’s roads present multiple threats beyond traffic accidents. Vehicle crime is a genuine occupational hazard for employees that drive as part of their duties.

Safety training that addresses only collision prevention and ignores these realities is fundamentally incomplete, failing the employer’s duty of care. Situational awareness and extraction training are not optional extras but essential investments in employee welfare and business continuity in high-risk environments,” says Herbert.

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