Canadian cars easier to steal than in the U.K.; misleading contracts: CBC's Marketplace cheat sheet

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Why some cars sold in the U.K. are harder to steal than their Canadian counterparts

When Anuj Sethi's Range Rover was stolen from his driveway, he says police told him it was one of six cars stolen on the same night in his Oakville, Ont., neighbourhood.

He was shocked to learn his car may have been harder for thieves to steal if he'd bought it in the U.K.

"This is completely not right. Car manufacturers should have the same security features all around the world," said Sethi.

CBC's Marketplace reviewed a recent report by insurance industry non-profit Équité Association of the 10 most stolen vehicles in Canada. Of those 10, six were made for roads in Canada and the United Kingdom.

When Marketplace compared features on cars sold in the U.K. with those sold in Canada, it found those six models had additional security features in the U.K. that aren't offered on Canadian versions of the same car,  which can make them harder to steal.

Despite a much smaller population than the U.K., at present, Canada has a considerably higher rate of car theft, with 286.46 cars stolen for every 100,000 people, compared to just 155.96/100,000 in the U.K., according to 2023 figures from Statistics Canada and the U.K.'s Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.

Car theft hit its peak in the U.K. in 1992 with 620,000 thefts, but in 2016, there were just 91,000, according to data from the Office for National Statistics

Bryan Gast, who leads auto theft investigations for Canada's insurance industry, believes in part that the more than 85 per cent decline in U.K. theft rates over that period can be attributed to automakers having to meet what he describes as "some of the most stringent security standards in the world."

While car theft rates have climbed back up in the U.K., Gast says cars sold in Canada remain far too easy to steal, and automakers need to do more to prevent the vehicle from being stolen in the first place

"When you can steal a vehicle in less than 30 seconds, there's issues." Read more.

• Watch Marketplace's full investigation,"Stolen in Seconds: Why aren't car makers doing more?", this Friday at 8 p.m., 8:30 p.m. in Newfoundland, on CBC-TV and anytime on YouTube or CBC Gem.

Rogers customers call contracts misleading as fee for TV boxes goes up $7/month

When Cathy Cooper signed a contract with Rogers Communications four months ago, she says a sales rep told her the monthly price for TV and internet service was guaranteed for two years. 

So she was shocked to see her monthly bill increase just three months later, and called the telco giant to find out what was going on.

That's when she learned that the TV boxes in her house were going up $7 apiece, except for one which would still be included in her monthly package. 

Cooper had six TV boxes, because her grown children and a grandchild live at home with her. 

"They [Rogers] are gouging people," Cooper said, sitting in her kitchen in Sidney, B.C., on Vancouver Island. "It's not right."

On the phone with Cooper, the Rogers rep explained that equipment such as TV boxes are considered a monthly rental — separate from the base TV service — and the fine print in customers' contracts says rental fees can change.

"Basically, they're allowed to do it," said Cooper. "I'm frustrated."

A public policy and technology expert says how the Rogers contract is presented appears to be misleading to customers.

"It's obviously a bait and switch," said Vass Bednar, executive director of McMaster University's Master of Public Policy in Digital Society program. 

"You sign up, you lock in, and then suddenly you're out of luck."

Bednar considers the price hike a "lazy" move by Rogers — to squeeze more money out of customers after its merger last year with Shaw Communications. 

Rogers spokesperson Zac Carreiro told Go Public that no one was available for an interview.

Carreiro did not address why some customers' TV boxes are several years old. He said the company will spend $4 billion on capital investments this year, including upgrades to equipment and software for hundreds of thousands of TV customers. Read more.

Most Canadians have a health-care provider but could be waiting weeks to see them, report suggests

Most Canadian adults, 83 per cent, say they have access to a regular family doctor or nurse practitioner, according to a new report. But those with a dedicated provider may face lengthy waits, the report's author says.

"The one thing that surprised me was the number of people who said that they had access to a regular health care provider," said Kathleen Morris, vice-president of research and analytics at Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) in Toronto.

But, even those with a family doctor may have trouble getting in to see them without waiting weeks, said Morris.

"Some of it might be because people have more chronic conditions that take longer when they have a visit."

Thursday's report from CIHI takes the pulse on shared priorities agreed to by federal, provincial and territorial governments in 2023. That includes:

• Increasing the supply of the health workforce and decreasing wait times for surgeries, which recovered to pre-pandemic levels. 
• Improving access to mental health and substance use services.
• Modernizing health care information systems and digital tools for secure sharing of electronic health information.

In 2023, 5.4 million (17 per cent) Canadians aged 18 and older didn't have access to a regular health care provider, such as a family doctor, general practitioner, medical specialist or nurse practitioner, according to the report.

Family doctors and nurse practitioners are considered the "lynchpin" in managing health-care services, Morris said.

Morris said provinces have different models to make sure people get front-line care, such as team-based care for those newly diagnosed with diabetes where a doctor works with a nurse and dietitian to get someone's blood sugar levels under control. Read more.

What else is going on?

Landlords' latest tactic in public battles with tenants: sue them for libel
Renters in three cities who made their disputes public are facing litigation.

Canada set to lose irreplaceable 'treasure trove' of fungi
15,000 live strains used to research emerging diseases, biodiversity.

N.S. chose a national grocery giant for its $6M buy local program. Reaction has been mixed
Producers, retailers review pros and cons of program to promote buying local.

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