"What we wanted to do, faced with the growing problem, was to find a way to reduce the act itself, by making it much more difficult for thieves", explains Simon Morissette, prevention officer at the SPL .
This anti-theft plate is fixed in such a way that it cannot be removed or cut. In addition, it is very difficult to remove. "To steal a catalytic converter, a thief needed about thirty seconds. They would lay under the vehicle, cut on each side and left with the converter in a matter of minutes.
With a stainless plaque like this one, it's almost impossible to do" says Simon Morissette. "Even if we cut the catalyst, we cannot remove it. To remove the protective plate, it would require a very noisy, very long technique. It's impractical for a thief," he adds.
The Service de police de Laval also specifies that the catalytic converters can be chiselled in order to discourage thieves and make it easy to trace which vehicle a catalytic converter belongs to when it is found by the authorities.
TVA nouvelles did an excellent coverage of the problem and the solution developed by HGregoire Mitsubishi Laval: https://www.tvanouvelles.ca/2022/06/20/une-solution-a-500-contre-le-vol-de-catalyseurs
