The United States witnessed the largest annual decline in vehicle thefts in forty years, thanks in part to advancements in anti-theft measures implemented by car manufacturers, with Hyundai and Kia in the forefront. With improving supply chains, the incentive to steal cars for parts was also significantly lowered. Hyundai and Kia saw their vehicles being the prime targets for thefts in 2021 and 2023, attributable to an absence of immobilizers making them easy pickings for robbers. This trend inspired hashtags such as ‘Kia Boys’ on several social media platforms.
Despite Hyundai and Kia vehicles finding a place among the top five most stolen cars in the previous year, theft numbers dipped by an impressive 37.5%, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau’s insights. Hyundai Motor America adopted measures to combat thefts of certain base models lacking immobilizers, incorporating complimentary software updates, ignition cylinder guards, and reimbursement initiatives.
Hyundai, of which the Korean parent company owns about a third of Kia and shares both structures and components, confided that 68% of susceptible vehicles had already been upgraded with the new anti-theft system. Decreased vehicle thefts pervaded the nationwide scale as well with an abatement of 16.6% to 850,708 vehicles stolen in 2024 as compared to the preceding year, gleaned from the National Insurance Crime Bureau’s figures.
Numbers reached the zenith with 1.02 million reported vehicle thieveries in 2023. The stabilization of automotive parts supplies and the availability of new vehicles deterred thievery, making it less opportune for culprits to steal vehicles. The storm of the pandemic saw a surge in carjackings as disruptions in the supply chain escalated prices for vehicles and their components.
However, the enhancement in stock levels of vehicles and parts has lessened the financial attractiveness of automobile theft – a phenomenon observed by Art Wheaton, a professor at Cornell University. Several states in America witnessed a noticeable decline in car theft numbers, including Washington, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon, and Colorado. All these states experienced a drastic fall in the quantity of stolen vehicles during 2024.
Although vehicles like the Ford F-150, the Chevrolet Silverado, the Toyota Camry, and the Honda Civic remain common targets for theft due to their extensive population on the streets, Hyundai and Kia vehicles still made it to the top 10 most stolen list in 2024. This indicates broader systemic challenges as per the observations of Professor Wheaton.
In contrast, despite being the region with the highest vehicle theft rate in the previous year, Washington, DC noted an 18% decline from the last year, reporting 842 thefts per 100,000 individuals. California and New Mexico occupied spots after the capital city with theft rates hovering close to 460 vehicles per 100,000 inhabitants.
Alex Piquero, a criminology professor at the University of Miami, applauded the efforts of law enforcement to disband organized theft groups. Simultaneously, the Council on Criminal Justice pointed towards a decrease in the number of black-market sales, on both national and international platforms, as another significant factor contributing to the overall decline in vehicle thefts.
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