Media Advisory - Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police, Insurance Bureau of
Canada, and Mac's Convenience Stores Team Up to Encourage Ontarians to "Lock
It or Lose It"

TORONTO, Nov. 30 /CNW/ - The Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP), Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), and Mac's Convenience stores are joining forces to kick off the second annual Lock It or Lose It program, a proactive crime prevention program that encourages drivers to take a few simple precautions to protect their vehicles and vehicle contents from theft - just in time for the holiday season.

Lock It or Lose It Program Media Event:

Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Yorkdale Mall, Toronto
North Side in front of Famous Players/Indigo Mall Entrance
10:00 am

Under the Lock It or Lose It program, police officers throughout Ontario examine parked vehicles to confirm they are locked and that no valuables have been left in plain view.

Auto theft costs Canadians more than $1 billion every year:

• In 2009,108,172 vehicles were stolen in Canada; of those, 27,175 were stolen in Ontario
• This is a 13% reduction in Ontario compared to the previous year
• Auto theft is not a victimless crime - or just a property crime. Every year innocent people die or are seriously injured as a direct result of auto theft
• Auto theft costs Canadians at least $1 billion per year which includes emergency response, court, policing, legal, and out-of-pocket costs, such as deductibles
• On average, auto theft costs every policyholder an additional $35 on his or her insurance premium
• In November, the Federal Government passed Bill S-9, Tackling Auto Theft and Property Obtained by Crime Act, which amended the Criminal Code of Canada to make auto theft a separate crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison, and a mandatory minimum sentence of six months in jail upon a third conviction. It is also now an offence to tamper with a vehicle identification number and to traffic in stolen property, which gives Canada Border Services Agency authority to seize stolen vehicles for export

IBC is sponsoring the initiative and Mac's Convenience stores across Ontario are supporting the Lock It or Lose It program by promoting the program through their 700 stores using their windows and in-store LCD monitors.

Members of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police serve their communities as the senior police leaders in municipal, regional, provincial, national, and First Nations police services across Ontario.

Insurance Bureau of Canada is the national industry association representing Canada's private home, car and, business insurers. Its member companies represent 90% of the property and casualty (P&C) insurance market in Canada. The P&C insurance industry employs over 110,000 Canadians, pays more than $6 billion in taxes to the federal, provincial, and municipal governments, and has a total premium base of $40 billion.

For further information:

Joe Couto
Ontario Association of
Chiefs of Police
416-926-0424 ext. 22
[email protected]

Mark Klein
Insurance Bureau of Canada
416-362-2031, ext. 4387
[email protected]

Sean Sportun
Mac's Convenience
Stores Inc.
416-904-3805
[email protected]