Whenever we take our phone out on the street, we’re at risk of having it snatched from our hands by brazen thieves.
In fact, thieves riding their mopeds and electric bikes can have thousand-pound devices out of our hands before we know it’s happened.
According to official stats, more than 70,000 people had their phones pinched in England and Wales on the street or from their bags.
But there are some phone models that end up in criminals’ hands more than others.
New data from US insurance company SquareTrade reveals Britain’s most stolen phones in 2025 – including some top brands.
And they’re all retailing more than £1,000 – suggesting thieves are especially attracted to and can recognise the pricier models.
So is your device a particular target for thieves?
Scroll down to find out!
One of the devices on the list is the Samsung S24 Ultra, released by the Korean company early last year and costing £1,249
Two drivers on a motor bike take the phone from a woman in London. After stealing, thieves are generally paid for their services, while the devices tend to be exported overseas for to be resold or dismantled for parts
According to the findings, iPhone 15 Pro Max – the most expensive iPhone that Apple released in 2023 – is the most stolen phone in Britain.
The high-end handset, starting from a whopping £1,199, featured the ‘Action button’, a USB-C charging port, and Apple’s powerful A17 chip.
The second most-stolen phone is the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which was released last autumn to replace the now-discontinued iPhone 15 Pro Max.
Also £1,199, iPhone 16 Pro Max is currently Apple’s most expensive phone on sale and comes with Apple Intelligence, a larger 6.9-inch display and an additional ‘Capture button’ for quicker photos.
Third on the list, meanwhile, is the Samsung S24 Ultra, released by the Korean company early last year and costing £1,249.
It features an 6.8 inch screen, a titanium frame, five rear cameras, Galaxy AI software and an integrated S Pen stylus for note-taking and drawing.
Notably, all three models are expensive ‘high-end’ options costing more than £1,000, suggesting thieves are particularly drawn to them.
After taking them, the thieves are generally paid for their services and the devices tend to be exported overseas for to be resold or dismantled for parts.
The two most-stolen phones in Britain are made by Apple – the iPhone 15 Pro Max (left) and the iPhone 16 Pro Max
This terrifying phone snatch in Marylebone, central London, shows a thief taking a woman’s phone as he zooms past on an e-bike
Whenever we take our phone out on the street, we’re at risk of having it snatched from our hands by brazen thieves. Pictured, pedestrians walk over newly-installed signage warning people of the high risk of phone snatch thefts in London on August 6, 2025
According to the data from SquareTrade, 39 per cent of mobile phone thefts in Europe happen in the UK.
What’s more, phone theft claims in the UK had increased by a whopping 425 per cent since June 2021, revealed the data, originally shared with the Times.
In all, 42 per cent of phone thefts in the UK occurred in London, with the capital equating to 16 per cent of all phone thefts in Europe.
Phone thefts in Britain peak during the summer months and at Christmas – periods that coincide with travel, festivals and shopping, resulting in heavier footfall on the streets, it found.
According to the Crime Survey for England and Wales 2024, an estimated 78,000 people had phones or bags snatched from them on the street in the year ending March 2024.
This is equivalent to 200 ‘snatch thefts’ a day and is a 153 per cent increase on the number of incidents in the year ending March 2023.
London is regarded as the ‘epicentre’ of phone thefts with £50 million worth of phones reported stolen in the capital last year.
Unfortunately, many victims are still not bothering reporting a snatching incident to police, it’s believed, so the actual figure could be way higher.
Pictured, a phone-snatching criminal on a bike mounts the pavement to take the device out of the hand of a victim waiting at a London bus stop in footage released by the Metropolitan Police
E-bikes are scooters have become the tool of choice for criminals across the country who can whip smartphones out of people’s hands and make a quick getaway.
Even the Daily Mail’s staff have been on the end of phone-snatching criminals who use a variety of scandalous tactics.
Trainee reporter Gethin Hicks had his iPhone 13 Pro taken by a thief outside a pub in London – and ended up in hospital after chasing the assailant down the street.
The grabber used a distinctive tactic that people should be on the lookout for – especially after a few drinks when their guard is down.
Meanwhile, executive science editor Xantha Leatham had her iPhone 15 taken out of her handbag at a club in Brighton – and the device ended up in Shenzhen, China.
This article was originally published by a www.dailymail.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .