Gauteng has topped the list for the province with the highest hijacking incidences, followed by KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape.
This was according to the National Hijacking Prevention Academy (NHPA), which this week released its report on hijacking rates in South Africa.
These findings also formed part of a report by vehicle recovery company Tracker which is based on statistics from its 1.1 million customer base. The company found that the areas in Gauteng most affected by hijackings were Kensington, Arcadia and Eldorado Park.
Meanwhile, the NHPA identified hotspots in provinces where vehicle hijacking was prevalent.
These included the Nelson Mandela Bridge, M1 in Riviera off-ramp, N1 in William Nicol off-ramp and the traffic lights on Kyalami Drive in Joburg.
The roads which carried the highest risk for hijacking in Pretoria included traffic lights on Watermeyer Street and Nelson Mandela Drive, the crossing at Lynnwood and Simon Vermooten roads, as well traffic lights at Lynnwood and Hans Strijdom roads.
The AA advised motorists to remain focused on the road in order to avoid being hijacked.
They added motorists should always check surroundings and place valuables away from open view.
In the event of a hijacking, the AA urged motorists and passengers to keep their hands visible at all times and to obey all instructions given by the hijackers.
“It is impossible to completely avoid being a target but, if you remain calm, the damage may only be stolen items or, at worst, a stolen car,” the AA said.