Watch Out for Holiday Car Thieves

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New data released by the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) shows a total of 22,705 vehicles were reported stolen on the 11 holidays in 2016 covered in this report. NICB theft data is pulled from the National Crime Information Center’s (NCIC) stolen vehicle file which showed a total of 803,719 vehicle thefts for the year. Most of the worse holidays for car theft (Halloween and Labor Day) are over but be sure to lock up your car on New Year’s Day

Halloween was the top holiday with 2,578 reported thefts. Halloween was followed, in descending order, by Labor Day (2,258), New Year’s Day (2,242), Memorial Day (2,139) and New Year’s Eve (2,110).
 The holidays with the fewest thefts in 2016 were: Christmas Day (1,664), Thanksgiving (1,777), Valentine’s Day (1,789), President’s Day (2,008) and Christmas Eve (2,054).

Holidays ranked by the number of thefts in 2016 were:

  1. Halloween (2,578)
  2. Labor Day (2,258)
  3. New Year’s Day (2,242)
  4. Memorial Day (2,139)
  5. New Year’s Eve (2,110)
  6. Independence Day (2,086)
  7. Christmas Eve (2,054)
  8. President’s Day (2,008)
  9. Valentine’s Day (1,789)
  10. Thanksgiving (1,777)
  11. Christmas Day (1,664)

California was the number one state with the most holiday vehicle thefts in 2016 with 5,285. It was followed by, in descending order, Texas (2,121), Florida (1,397), Washington (889) and Georgia (763).

NICB reminds drivers to be vigilant and to secure their cars during this season as vehicle thieves are not filled with the holiday spirit. Some will definitely make a gift to themselves of your vehicle if you make it easy for them.

Anyone with information concerning insurance fraud or vehicle theft can report it anonymously by calling toll-free 800-TEL-NICB (800-835-6422), texting keyword “fraud” to TIP411 (847411) or submitting a form on our website. Or, download the NICB Fraud Tips app on your iPhone or Android device.