Auto Theft Rates: U.S. Cities with the Highest and Lowest Auto Theft Rates

Much like the specific types of cars thieves love to steal, certain areas are also magnets for criminals and car thieves. What’s interesting is, the areas that are hit most often by car thieves are not the usual suspects. American’s have a false sense of security about how safe their vehicles really are, especially if they don’t live in places like Chicago, Los Angeles or New York. And finally, contrary to popular belief, carjacking is not the number method of car theft in America. The truth is:

1. Not one of the country’s hottest metropolitan areas made the top ten list of U.S. cities with the highest theft rates. In fact, many places that made the list are not heavily populated at all.
2. Carjacking accounts for only 3% of all motor vehicle thefts. According to U.S. Department of Justice data, approximately 1,095,769 motor vehicles were reported stolen in 2007. Only 32,873 were the result of carjacking.

Although the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) reports that car theft rates in the U.S. overall have declined for the fifth consecutive year, from –8.1% for 2007 and –12.6% for 2008, unlikely metropolitan areas such as Modesto, California (currently number one on the list) and Laredo, Texas, reported significant increases for 2008. Overall, the entire state of California ranks number one in the nation for car thefts, but Modesto has certainly made its mark, beating out Los Angeles (#24), San Diego (#4), and San Francisco (#9). In similar fashion, Laredo, Texas (#2) beat out larger cities in the state such as El Paso (#17) and San Antonio, which didn’t even make the top 25 list.

The common thread among U.S. cities with the highest car theft rates is: many of these areas are actually border cities and towns that have become a pipeline for car thieves smuggling everything from weapons and money to drugs through Mexico. Simply put, stolen vehicles in most border towns are used to commit other crimes. But western border towns are not the only areas where stolen cars are commonly used to commit other crimes. Yakima, Washington, number 3 on the list (and the only northern state on the list), cites rampant criminal activity such as drug dealing and heavy gang activity as the cause for most car thefts. Yakima also happens to sit on a main road that runs between Canada and Mexico.

On the other side of the coin are highway heavy areas such as the San Francisco/Oakland/Freemont, California area, and Sacramento, which have a higher number of drivers than other major metropolitan areas, such as New York and Chicago. Although Chicago and New York do have their fair share of drivers and highways, the highways are not as easily accessible as other areas. In addition, these areas are highly regarded as major commuter cities.

Continue reading to find out if your city made the top 25 list of cities with the highest car theft rates. Then, read on to find out which cities have the lowest car theft rates.  

**The Top 25 U.S. Cities with the Highest Car Theft Rates

Before we dive into the top 25, here are a few figures to mull over. Western states accounted for 36.8% of all car thefts nationwide -- the largest share of thefts, followed by southern states at a close 34.6% and the Midwest at 18.5%. Northeastern states accounted for around 10.2%.

1. Modesto, California
Total Thefts: 4,235
Rate per 100,000: 829

2. Laredo, Texas
Total Thefts: 1,960
Rate per 100,000: 827

3. Yakima, Washington
Total Thefts: 1,828
Rate per 100,000: 779

4. San Diego/Carlsbad/San Marcos, California
Total Thefts: 22,554
Rate per 100,000: 751

5. Bakersfield, California
Total Thefts: 5,918
Rate per 100,000: 739

6. Stockton, California
Total Thefts: 4,963
Rate per 100,000: 738

7. Las Vegas/Paradise, Nevada
Total Thefts: 13,662
Rate per 100,000: 732

8. Albuquerque, New Mexico
Total Thefts: 6,182
Rate per 100,000: 730

9. San Francisco/Oakland/Freemont, California
Total Thefts: 30,735
Rate per 100,000: 719

10. Fresno, California
Total Thefts: 6,533
Rate per 100,000: 718

11.    Visalia-Porterville, California
12.    Detroit, Michigan
13.    Tucson, Arizona
14.    Sacramento, California
15.    Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
16.    El Centro, California
17.    El Paso, Texas
18.    Vallejo, California
19.    Phoenix, Arizona
20.    Eugene, Oregon
21.    San Bernardino, California
22.    Columbus, Ohio
23.    Miami, Florida
24.    Los Angeles, California
25.    New Orleans, Louisiana

**Cities with the Lowest Car Theft Rates

Now that you understand the reasons why many of the nation’s major cities did not make the list of cities with the highest car theft rates, the list of cities with the lowest rates will make much more sense. In addition to lower crime rates overall and less susceptibility to certain border crimes and activity, some of the areas listed below are also more condensed than others and/or highways are not as easy to access. This makes escape difficult.

The cities with the lowest car theft rates are:

1. Virginia Beach, Virginia
Total Thefts: 731
Rate per 100,000: 172

2. New York, New York
Total Thefts: 50,674
Rate per 100,000: 260

3. Austin, Texas
Total Thefts: 2,867
Rate per 100,000: 386

4. Arlington, Texas
Total Thefts: 1,602
Rate per 100,000: 432

5. San Antonio, Texas
Total Thefts: 4,291
Rate per 100,00: 459

6. Louisville, Kentucky
Total Thefts: 6,625
Rate per 100,000: 484

7. San Jose, California
Total Thefts: 4,666
Rate per 100,000: 497

8. Wichita, Kansas 
Total Thefts: 1,805
Rate per 100,000: 500

9. Colorado Springs, Colorado
Total Thefts: 1,994
Rate per 100,000: 554

10. Jacksonville, Florida
Total Thefts: 4,740
Rate per 100,000: 597

**Results are calculated on a scale of thefts per 100,000 people.

Sources

U.S. Census Bureau Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2007
126th Edition, Washington, DC.

U.S. Department of Justice
http://www.usdoj.gov/

National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB)
https://www.nicb.org

Insurance Institute For Highway Safety (IIHS)
Highway Loss Data Institute
http://www.iihs.org/

Insurance Information Institute
http://www.iii.org/media/hottopics/insurance/test4/

Forbes.com
Where Your Car is More Likely to be Stolen
http://www.forbes.com/2009/04/15/car-theft-hotspots-lifestyle-vehicles-car-theft.html