A Lot of Cars, a Lot of Thefts: A Look at Thefts of Compact Cars

Heads up, Toyota Corolla owners: If you’re one of the many who have the compact’s 2010-12 model years, it’s time to think about how to best stop a thief from stealing your “widely popular” car.

Frank Scafidi at the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) used those words last year to describe the Corolla, which the NICB reported is by far the most-stolen compact car in America.

And for car thieves, “widely popular” might as well mean “widely available to steal.” Here is a breakdown of the NICB’s top 10 most stolen compact/subcompact cars:

Rank Make & model Class Thefts 1 Toyota Corolla Compact 3,664 2 Ford Focus Compact 1,797 3 Honda Civic Compact 1,725 4 Nissan Versa Subcompact 1,499 5 Nissan Sentra Compact 1,216 6 Hyundai Elantra Compact 1,198 7 Mazda 3 Compact 1,085 8 Toyota Yaris Subcompact 1,072 9 Volkswagen Jetta Compact 993 10 Kia Forte Compact 863

Anti-Theft Devices for Your Compact/Subcompact

Compacts don’t often go missing completely after their owners report them stolen. In fact, just 8 percent of stolen compacts and subcompacts go unrecovered, according to the NICB.

For SUVs and CUVs, a higher 13 percent go unrecovered.  For sporty cars, it’s 14 percent.

That means that an anti-theft tracking device may not be the best bet for your compact/subcompact. It may end up being found later anyways, since nearly 9 out of every 10 stolen compacts are eventually recovered.

It may be smarter to invest in anti-theft deterrents that stop a thief outright: the Club, alarm system, and/or smart keys.

And be sure to ask your car insurer what kind of discounts on auto insurance you can get with an anti-theft device.

For more tips about protecting your vehicle against thieves, read our other entries in our anti-theft series commemorating Auto Theft Awareness Month:

• Protect Your Car
• My Car’s Been Stolen! Now What?
• Big Cars, Big Theft Targets: Tips for Sports Utility, Crossover Vehicles

Photo courtesy of Sarah Larson