New Research Indicates California Has The Most Car Thefts In America
The United States saw a 25 percent increase in motor vehicle thefts between 2019 and 2022, new research from MarketWatch Guides suggests, and that rise in thefts is being felt hardest in California. More than one million cars were stolen in 2022, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), and that trend doesn’t show signs of stopping; nearly 500,000 vehicles were stolen in the first half of 2023 alone, the NICB says, and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data shows that one car is stolen in America every 32 seconds. As for California, 99,769 total car thefts were reported between Jan. and July 2023, which is over 44,000 more than the next closest state, Texas (55,365). Illinois saw a 38 percent increase in car thefts between 2022 and 2023, MarketWatch Guides said, which ranked as the highest jump in the nation. When breaking down yearly car thefts by state, California doesn’t fare well there either; 202,685 cars were reported stolen in 2022, according to the Insurance Information Institute. And while that is only a one percent increase from the previous year, it is over 97,000 more thefts than second-placed Texas.
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