Auto theft rate up 10% locally, down statewide

The rate of vehicle thefts in the Portland metropolitan increased by 10 percent from 2014 to 2015, according to a new report from a collection of insurance companies, but the total number of vehicle stolen in Washington state fell.

The National Insurance Crime Bureau, a not-for-profit organization created by the insurance industry, reviews annually FBI vehicle theft data, and found a vehicle theft rate of about 326 per 100,000 people in the metro area last year.

Total vehicle thefts in Washington declined 8 percent, the organization said. Spokane and the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metropolitan statistical areas saw substantial decreases in vehicle thefts.

The two cities were in the top 10 nationwide for the highest vehicle theft rates in 2014. In 2015, Spokane dropped from sixth to 25 and the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue area from eighth to 20th.

The vehicle theft rate in Spokane dropped 21 percent, and in Seattle and its surrounds, 16 percent.

Statewide, Yakima saw the highest rate of vehicle thefts in 2015, at 470 thefts per 100,000 people, although that was a 1 percent decline from the year before.

The Portland metro area, when included with the rest of Washington’s cities, ranked fourth.

According to other FBI estimates, there were almost 690,000 motor vehicle thefts nationwide in 2014.

The total number of thefts has declined consistently, but it’s still a substantial chunk of property crime in the U.S.

More than $4.5 billion was lost to vehicle thefts nationwide in 2014, according to the FBI.

Andy