Number of stolen cars goes up in eight states

John Egan

While the number of U.S. car thefts declined 7.9 percent from 2009 to 2010, residents of eight states saw the number of stolen cars go up during that time, according to new FBI figures.

Washington state experienced the biggest gain — 8.3 percent — going from 23,747 car thefts in 2009 to 25,729 in 2010.

The number of car thefts in Washington state climbed 8.3 percent from 2009 to 2010, according to the FBI.

Other states that witnessed upticks in car thefts from 2009 to 2010 were:

• Illinois — 7.9 percent (from 26,676 to 28,796).

• Hawaii — 5 percent (from 4,857 to 5,100).

• Nebraska — 3 percent (from 3,509 to 3,614).

• Kentucky — 1.9 percent (from 6,096 to 6,209).

• Delaware — 1.2 percent (from 1,906 to 1,929).

• Kansas — 0.9 percent (from 5,958 to 6,009).

• Minnesota — 0.5 percent (from 8,546 to 8,587).

On the other end of the scale, the number of stolen cars plummeted 21.9 percent in Wyoming, from 757 in 2009 to 591 in 2010. Overall, the number of car thefts fell in 32 states and the District of Columbia, according to the FBI.

Other states that notched double-digit declines in car thefts were:

• New Mexico — 19.3 percent (from 6,502 to 5,247).

• Arizona — 18.6 percent (from 26,437 to 21,508).

• Nevada — 17.8 percent (from 12,398 to 10,185).

• Florida — 17.5 percent (from 50,259 to 41,462).

• Louisiana — 14.6 percent (from 11,589 to 9,893).

• West Virginia — 14.4 percent (from 2,757 to 2,361).

• Utah — 14.2 percent (from 6,937 to 5,949).

• Texas — 11.2 percent (from 76,569 to 68,023).

• Oregon — 10.7 percent (from 9,977 to 8,912).

• Idaho — 10.2 percent (from 1,472 to 1,322).

In a recent news release about the downward trend in stolen cars, Joe Wehrle, president and CEO of the nonprofit National Insurance Crime Bureau, says: “While improved anti-theft technology and law enforcement efforts have had a significant impact on thefts, professional criminal rings and gangs are active in parts of the country and stopping them is the ongoing challenge.”

Car theft is covered under the comprehensive section of an auto insurance policy, the Insurance Information Institute says. Theft coverage applies to the loss of a vehicle as well as car parts, such as air bags.

Comprehensive coverage is optional, not mandatory. Premium rates for comprehensive coverage are affected by the risk of loss — the likelihood that an insured car will be stolen or damaged — as well as by the car’s value, the institute says.