Car theft is a major concern for many American drivers and for good reason: there are more than 880,000 vehicle thefts each year across the United States, according to the most recent data from the National Insurance Crime Bureau’s (NICB) Hot Spots report. To put this huge number in perspective, an average of one vehicle is stolen in the U.S. every 36 seconds.
While the country’s biggest cities have a reputation for being carjacking hotbeds, the reality is that car theft poses a risk to drivers everywhere, especially since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The NICB notes that the pandemic created multiple national crises — including an economic slump and diminished school and social programming — that correlate with increased car theft rates. In America, the total number of vehicles stolen rose 11 percent between 2019 and 2020, marking a sharp departure from several years of modest declines in carjackings. With theft rates on the rise, drivers should be vigilant about locking their car and keeping valuables out of sight, especially in areas of higher risk. Drivers who have unfortunately fallen victim to car theft can take steps such as filing a police report, having the right paperwork on hand when talking to their insurance company, and remembering to file a stolen vehicle report with the DMV as well.
Curious to see where carjackings are most common in every state, the data scientists at Insurify analyzed NICB data to identify the city in each state with the highest car theft rate. Click here to read the full report.
