https://www.quora.com/Why-dont-people-steal-cars-from-the-car-dealer-instead-of-a-parking-lot#:~:text=Dealerships%20have%20security%20cameras%20running,dealerships%20are%20locked%20and%20tracked.
Jason Lancaster
Originally Answered: Why dont people steal cars from the car dealer instead of a parking lot?
First, understand that cars are stolen off of dealership lots all the time. However, this is less common than random street theft for a lot of reasons (in no particular order):
1. Vehicles that are on a dealer's lot don't have any plates...and police officers are good at spotting vehicles that don't have license plates.
2. As far as new cars are concerned, it's very difficult to sell them on the open market because a lot of the title washing tactics thieves use are hard to pull off with brand-new vehicles.
3. Parting a brand new car is tough too, as most people in the parts business can tell the difference between a used part and a new part that was purchased at a used part price...someone somewhere in the chain might get suspicious. That, and the fact that most people don't want or need parts for new cars (parts stolen off of older vehicles are more valuable).
4. Dealers take quite a few simple security precautions to protect their inventory:
well-lit parking areas
24 hour security and surveillance
dealership entrances and exits - or just portions of the new car and used car lot - can be blocked off with vehicles or gates. Just park a couple of cars in front of the entrance and thieves are forced to steal 2 or 3 cars just to get one off the lot
the most important vehicles are parked inside the dealership, either on the showroom floor or in the service area
recent trade-ins or other "back-lot" cars (which are the most likely to be stolen) are usually parked inside fenced-in areas
5. The relative risk and difficulty of stealing a dealership vehicle is higher than the relative risk and difficulty of stealing a parked car off the street. It's not that thieves won't steal dealership vehicles, it's just that it's easier to steal something else first.