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SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — California has the highest auto theft rate in the nation with nearly 100,000 car thefts in eight months, MarketWatch reports in a new study.
The Bay Area metro does not appear on the list of top five cities for auto theft, despite California having the highest ranking, the study reports.
Parts of the Bay Area (marked in the study as San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley) rank eighth in the nation for metropolitan areas with the highest auto theft rates.
SF-Oakland-Berkeley had nearly 700 thefts per 100,000 residents in 2023, according to research from the Insurance Information Institute.
Bakersfield is the only California metro to make the top 10 list, ranking first in the Bay Area and second nationally, according to the study.
According to the study, Colorado has the highest number of metropolitan areas associated with auto thefts, with Pueblo leading the way, followed by Denver-Aurora-Lakewood in third and Greeley in ninth place.
California isn’t the only state where auto thefts are on the rise, the study reports that auto thefts have increased by 25% nationwide over the past three years.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a car is stolen every 32 seconds in the United States.
NHTSA reports that more than $8 billion in assets will be stolen through vehicle theft in 2022, with 74% of thefts occurring due to driver error, such as leaving keys in the car.
- Pueblo, Colorado
- Bakersfield, California
- Denver – Aurora – Lakewood, Colorado
- memphis tennessee
- Portland – Vancouver – Hillsboro, Oregon – Washington
- Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Seattle – Tacoma – Bellevue, WA
- San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley
- Greeley, Colorado
- Kansas City, Missouri
According to the report, certain vehicle models consistently rank among the most popular auto thefts in all 50 states, with early 2000s Ford and Chevrolet pickups topping the list.
However, Kias and Hyundai cars have been circulating in common car thefts, mainly due to social media trends highlighting how easy it is to break into a car without a key fob. The people who popularized this trend are popularly known as “Kia Boys.”
“Thieves have found ways to start cars without using the key fob, or the car owner simply leaves the key fob inside the car, so the thief can simply open the door, press the start button and drive away. Something like [TikTok] This challenge has made several Kia and Hyundai models very easy targets. All you need is your know-how, your mobile phone, and a USB cable. As a result, tens of thousands of Kias/Hyundais have been stolen over the past few years. ”
Dr. Christopher Herman, Associate Professor, Department of Law and Police Science, City University of New York
