Saving You Money For Life

The National Insurance Crime Bureau reports that for 2005, the most stolen vehicles in the nation were:

1. 1991 Honda Accord
2. 1995 Honda Civic
3. 1989 Toyota Camry
4. 1994 Dodge Caravan
5. 1994 Nissan Sentra
6. 1997 Ford F150 Series
7. 1990 Acura Integra
8. 1986 Toyota Pickup
9. 1993 Saturn SL
10. 2004 Dodge Ram Pickup

In 2005, 1,235,226 motor vehicles were reported stolen which is 2,625 fewer than in 2004. Using the FBI’s average valuation of $6,173 per stolen vehicle, this amounts to over $7.6 billion in vehicle-value losses in 2005. Some of this is simply insurance loss, and some is insurance fraud. All of it drives insurance premiums up for every consumer, and results in higher premiums for cars more vulnerable to theft.

62.1% of all stolen vehicles are recovered. Where, you might ask, do the others go? In 2005, this amounted to 450,000 disappeared cars. The short answer is that they fuel a number of related insurance fraud and vehicle theft activities. Three prominent destinations include:

Exports. NICB Agents have recovered a significant number of stolen vehicles from foreign countries. It is not unusual for stolen vehicles to be shipped intact to other countries where prospective buyers can have them for a fraction of what they would legitimately cost and with no questions asked.

Owner Give-Ups. An owner give-up means that the owner has filed a false theft report. Owner give-ups are often motivated by economic factors; owing more on a car that it is worth, or problems with auto lease requirements sometimes makes feigned theft an attractive option.

Chop Shops. A good percentage of stolen vehicles end up in chop shops. These are places that dissemble stolen vehicles and sell their parts to individuals, dealers and body shops – where there has been a thriving underground market for years. Professionals can strip these cars in a matter of hours and leave the skeleton abandoned.

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