You likely don’t want to think about having your car stolen. But you might be at more risk of having your car stolen simply because of the type of car you are driving. And, with today’s newer car technology, thieves are finding new ways to steal cars. Even though anti-theft technology has helped to decrease car theft, this doesn’t mean that you still don’t have that risk.
The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) which is a nonprofit organization that works with law enforcement and insurers to simplify the detection, identification and prosecution of insurance crooks, released a national car theft analysis that compares yearly statistics for population, car registrations and thefts from 1960 – 2013.
FBI 2013 crime figures showed that there were 699,594 cars that were reported stolen the following year. The good news is this is a 58 percent decrease from the year 1991 when car theft was as high as 1,661,738. The bad news is there are still a lot of cars being stolen each year.
To see if you have an increased risk, you can see if your car is in the below top 10 cars that are frequently stolen.
Top 10 Frequently Stolen Cars
In 2014, the top 10 cars that are frequently stolen include:
- 1. Honda Accord: 51,290 thefts
- 2. Honda Civic: 43,936 thefts
- 3. Ford Pickup (full size): 28,680 thefts
- 4. Chevrolet Pickup (full size): 23,196 thefts
- 5. Toyota Camry: 14,605 thefts
- 6. Dodge Pickup (full size): 11,075 thefts
- 7. Dodge Caravan: 10,483 thefts
- 8. Nissan Altima: 9,109 thefts
- 9. Acura Integra: 6,902 thefts
- 10. Nissan Maxima: 6,586 thefts
Since their introduction in 1997, ‘smart keys’ or the transponder has become increasingly sophisticated. Because of this, thieves are now finding new ways to steal your car including:
- Acquiring keys illegally
- Not returning rental vehicles
- Fraudulent financing
- VIN switching
Even though there has been a decline in car theft, your car is not theft-proof. If it does get stolen, it can be a real pain to overcome the loss. Therefore, the NICB has put out a ‘layers of protection’ list of tips that you can follow to prevent your car from getting stolen.
In addition to this, you should always lock up your car and be sure to get yourself a sound auto insurance policy to protect you against the financial burden of a stolen vehicle.
