CarFax lists most-targeted vehicles for catalytic converter thefts

Deputy Jaime Moran from the L.A. Sheriffs Department engraves the catalytic converter of a vehicle with a traceable number. (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)

CarFax put its team of data scientists to work putting a more representative number to the volume of catalytic converter thefts across the country. While you might be surprised to have just found out that CarFax has a team of data scientists, you probably won't be surprised to hear the team's conclusion that thefts are far greater than have been reported. The National Insurance Crime Bureau has been the go-to source for national theft figures. Earlier this year, the NICB wrote that "thefts increased 1,215% between 2019 and 2022." With the NICB logging 3,389 reported thefts in 2019, the 2022 figure would be just over 38,100. But the NICB only tracks thefts vehicle owners reported to their auto insurance. When CarFax searched the data and reasons for catalytic converter replacements, it found "as many as 153,000 [stolen cats] in the U.S. in 2022."

That sounds more like it, and even that is probably undersells the issue. The Houston Chronicle reported there 7,800 cats stolen in Houston alone in 2021. The New York Times reported 7,000 cats were stolen in New York City last year. In August 2022, Portland, Oregon police busted a crime ring responsible for trafficking more than 44,000 catalytic converters in 2021 and 2022, stolen from vehicles just on the West Coast.