Does Your Car Attract Thieves?
Although you may not like to think about it, the car you drive may be one that thieves are looking to steal. That’s right, certain cars are targets, and you may be driving one.
Every year, the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) puts together a list of “Hot Wheels” which are the most commonly stolen cars from the previous year. According to the NICB, older car models are hot commodities for car thieves because they can get good money for stolen vehicle parts. To find out if your car is in danger of being stolen, look at the following lists of the 10 most frequently stolen cars in the United States.
Most Commonly Stolen Cars in General
According to the NICB’s annual report of the most frequently stolen cars in the United States, the most stolen vehicles in 2019—the most recent year data is available for—included the following:
- Ford Pickup (Full Size) (38,938 stolen)
- Honda Civic (33,220 stolen)
- Chevrolet Pickup (Full Size) (32,583 stolen)
- Honda Accord (30,745 stolen)
- Toyota Camry (15,656 stolen)
- Nissan Altima (13,355 stolen)
- Toyota Corolla (12,137 stolen)
- Dodge Pickup (Full Size) (11,292 stolen)
- GMC Pickup (Full Size) (11,164)
- Honda CR-V (10,094 stolen)
Most Commonly Stolen Cars By Model Year
The NICB’s report also includes a list of the most frequently stolen cars by model year. The top 10 included the following:
- 2000 Honda Civic (4,731 stolen)
- 1997 Honda Accord (3,563 stolen)
- 2006 Ford Pickup (Full Size) (3,061 stolen)
- 2004 Chevrolet Pickup (Full Size) (2,099 stolen)
- 2019 Ram Pickup (Full Size) (1,547 stolen)
- 2001 Honda CRV (1,394 stolen)
- 2015 Nissan Altima (1,349 stolen)
- 2001 Dodge Pickup (Full Size) (1,174 stolen)
- 2019 Jeep Cherokee/Grand Cherokee (1,110 stolen)
- 2018 GMC Pickup (Full Size) (1,101 stolen)
Summary
Regardless of what type of car you have, there are things you can do to prevent theft, which include never leaving your vehicle running and unattended for any reason, and making sure to always park in a high-traffic, well-lit area.
If you happen to have a vehicle that’s on the Hot Wheels list, talk to your local law enforcement to see if they provide any anti-theft devices at little to no cost to you.
