Thieves Target Vehicles in U.S. Coastal and Border Communities
23 March 1999
Thieves Target Vehicles in U.S. Coastal and Border Communities; More Than 200,000 Vehicles Illegally Exported Each Year PALOS HILLS, Ill. March 22 -- Port and border communities
continue to be boom areas for the vehicle theft business, according to a study
by the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB).
"The lucrative export market for cars and trucks and their parts makes
metropolitan areas with access to port facilities and borders special markets
for thieves," says John DiLiberto, NICB president and CEO. "People who live
and work in these areas need to be extra careful and take steps to protect
their vehicles from theft."
The NICB's study analyzed vehicle theft rates of metropolitan statistical
areas (MSA's) in the U.S. in 1997 using vehicle theft data from the FBI,
department of motor vehicles and state police departments, and registered
vehicle data from R.L. Polk. The vehicle theft rate was determined by
dividing registered vehicles by stolen vehicles.
The MSA's with the ten highest vehicle theft rates are:
1. Miami, Fla. 6. Tucson, Ariz.
2. Jersey City (Hudson County), N.J. 7. Phoenix-Mesa, Ariz.
3. Fresno, Calif. 8. Albuquerque, N.M.
4. Memphis, Tenn. 9. Sacramento, Calif.
5. New York, N.Y. 10. New Orleans, La.
Of the top 25 metro areas in the nation for vehicle theft, nearly half are
ports or communities with easy access to the borders.
Even though overall vehicle theft rates were down 3 percent thanks to the
effective efforts of law enforcement and the increasing use of deterrent
devices, vehicle theft remains the number one property crime in the country,
costing more than $7 billion dollars each year. Approximately 1.4 million
vehicles were stolen nationwide last year, and around 32 percent were never
recovered.
According to the NICB, many of the unrecovered vehicles are often shipped
overseas or driven across state to international borders. The NICB reports
approximately 200,000 vehicles were illegally exported in 1997.
"Newer, more expensive vehicles such as luxury sedans and utility vehicles
are more likely to be shipped abroad. In most markets, older vehicles are
stolen for their parts," said DiLiberto.
To help combat vehicle theft, the NICB recommends using a layered approach
to protect your vehicle. The number of layers a vehicle needs varies depending
on the vehicle and geographic location. Budget and personal preferences
should also determine which anti-theft device is best. There are four layers
of protection to consider: common sense -- removing the keys and locking the
doors; visible and audible devices -- steering wheel locks or alarms;
immobilizing devices -- smart keys or kill switches; and tracking devices.
To increase awareness of vehicle theft Hot Spots across the nation, the
NICB, the International Association of Auto Theft Investigators and Winner
International (Maker of The Club(R) vehicle anti-theft device) are partnering
in the fight against vehicle theft..
Consumers can log onto the NICB's Web site at http://www.nicb.org to perform
their own vehicle theft prevention checkup.
The vehicle theft study was undertaken by the National Insurance Crime
Bureau, a non-profit organization supported by approximately 1,000 insurance
and self-insured companies dedicated to fighting insurance-related crime.
The NICB(R) Vehicle Theft Study
What's inside?
The NICB Vehicle Theft Study contains vehicle theft rates and rankings for
Metropolitan Statistical Areas in the United States from 1994 through 1997.
What are MSA's?
Metropolitan Statistical Areas are major metropolitan centers. MSA's
typically consist of several counties surrounding a major city. For example,
the Chicago MSA includes the city of Chicago, Cook County and eight
surrounding counties. MSA's represent approximately 90 percent of the entire
United States population.
Why study MSA's?
MSA's more accurately reflect vehicle theft rates on a national scale than
individual communities. Studying MSA's instead of individual communities also
helps eliminate statistical errors often resulting in areas with heavy
commuting.
Why study registered vehicles?
Studying registered motor vehicles instead of population more accurately
reflects the vehicle theft rates in areas, which rely heavily on mass
transportation. For instance, nearly 50 percent of New York City residents do
not own vehicles, since they often rely on subways, buses and taxis.
What do the numbers mean?
Rank -- How the MSA's vehicle theft rate compares nationally in 1997. For
instance, a rank of 75 means the MSA had the 75th highest theft rate in the
nation in 1997.
Vehicles -- The number of registered vehicles in the MSA in a particular
year. The R.L. Polk Company in Detroit, Mich. provides registered vehicle
data to the NICB. Polk receives registered vehicle data directly from the
Departments of Motor Vehicles in all 50 states and Puerto Rico.
Thefts -- Number of vehicles stolen in the MSA in a particular year as
reported by the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reports and
the state police.
Rate -- The vehicle theft rate in the MSA in a particular year. The
vehicle theft rate is the number of registered vehicles divided by the number
of thefts. Theft rates of 50 means 1 out of 50 registered vehicles were
stolen in the MSA in 1997. Areas with low theft rates have high incidences of
vehicle theft.
What is the NICB?
The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) is a not-for-profit
organization dedicated to combating vehicle theft and insurance fraud.
Approximately 1,000 property/casualty insurance companies and several self-
insured organizations support the NICB.
If you have any questions about the Vehicle Theft Study, contact the NICB
Corporate Communications Department at 708-430-2430.