Oregon – After the 2021 changes in police rules in Washington state, which included new guidelines for car chases, many people thought this might lead to more crime. Over the past three years, several reports have looked into car-related crimes in the state.
The most recent research by Simmrin Law Group used FBI numbers to see which states had the highest number of car thefts in 2022. They checked the number of stolen vehicles for every 100,000 people in each state using the Crime Data Explorer.
Colorado had the most car thefts, Washington was second, Oregon sitting on the third position
In this ranking, Washington came in second for the most car thefts, with Colorado at the top and Oregon just behind in the third place.
Top 10 states with the most car thefts
Simmrin Law Group reports that in 2022, Colorado saw the most car thefts. The state experienced 45,883 vehicle thefts, which is 786 for every 100,000 residents.
Michael Simmrin of Simmrin Law Group highlighted in a press release that FBI data indicates 2.52% of Colorado’s total arrests in 2022 were for car thefts. This is the highest rate for this crime among all states.
Washington came in second, with 49,777 reported car thefts, amounting to 639 thefts per 100,000 people. Oregon was in third place, with its number of car thefts less than half of Washington’s, at 552 thefts per 100,000 residents.
The remaining top 10 were:
- New Mexico
- Nevada
- Missouri
- California
- Hawaii
- Tennessee
- Texas
New Hampshire recorded the lowest number of car thefts, with only 67 incidents per 100,000 people, totaling 928 in 2022.
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This same FBI data was also used in a WalletHub study to figure out the best and worst states for driving. The WalletHub research considered 31 different factors, one of which was the rate of car thefts. Interestingly, Washington was found to be the second-worst state for driving.
How to protect from car thefts
Fully insuring your car, not just getting the required liability insurance, is most probably the best you can do if you own a vehicle. If you’re insured for car theft, you can greater protect yourself in the event your car is stolen.
