Motor Vehicle Theft

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The Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program defines motor vehicle theft as the theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle. The offense includes the stealing of automobiles, trucks, buses, motorcycles, snowmobiles, etc. The taking of a motor vehicle for temporary use by persons having lawful access is excluded from this definition.

Overview

• Nationwide in 2005, there were an estimated 1.2 million motor vehicle thefts, or approximately 416.7 motor vehicles stolen for every 100,000 inhabitants.
• The estimated volume and rate of motor vehicle thefts in 2005 decreased 0.2 percent and 1.1 percent, respectively, when compared with data for 2004.
• When considering data for 10 years earlier, the estimated volume and rate of motor vehicle thefts in 2005 decreased 11.4 percent and 20.7 percent, respectively, when compared with estimates for 1996.
• An estimated 93.3 percent of the Nation's motor vehicle thefts occurred in Metropolitan Statistical Areas in 2005. (Based on Table 2.) (See Area Definitions for more information about Metropolitan Statistical Areas.)
• Property losses due to motor vehicle theft in 2005 were estimated at $7.6 billion, averaging $6,173 per stolen vehicle. (Based on Tables 1 and 23.)
• Among vehicle types, automobiles comprised 73.4 percent of the motor vehicles reported stolen in 2005. (Based on Table 19.)

Expanded motor vehicle theft data

Expanded offense data are the details of the various offenses that the Program collects beyond the count of how many crimes law enforcement agencies report. These details may include the type of weapons used in a crime, type or value of items stolen, and so forth. In addition, expanded data include trends (for example, 2-year comparisons) and rates per 100,000 inhabitants.

Expanded information regarding motor vehicle theft is available in the following tables:

Trends (2-year): Tables 12, 13, 14, and 15
Rates (per 100,000 inhabitants): Tables 16, 17, 18, and 19
Offense Analysis: Table 23 and 24
Vehicle Type: Tables 15 and 19
Motor Vehicle Theft Table, "Motor Vehicle Theft, Percent Distribution within Region, 2005"

Release Date: September 2006