Coronavirus Pandemic Has Led to an Increase in Car Thefts
Photo: TheDigitalWay
With many states giving stay-at-home orders and encouraging social distancing at the moment, more vehicles are sitting idle in parking garages and driveways. As a result, during this pandemic, police have reported a spike in car thefts.
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Car thefts across the United States
Since mid-March, police in a number of major cities throughout the United States have noticed a decrease in many crimes, but they’ve also seen an increase in car thefts. The New York Police Department found that car thefts went up by an astounding 53 percent in just a 28-day time period with a total of 464 incidents. During that same time period in 2019, there were only 303 incidents. Meanwhile, crimes involving robbery decreased year over year.
On the opposite coast in Seattle, the police department obtained 300 car theft reports within the past month. The number of these reports was up 24 percent from the same time during the previous year. The Los Angeles Police Department got 1,390 stolen vehicle reports just between March 15 and April 11. In the month prior, the department received 1,249 reports, which equates to 11.3 percent fewer reports.
Dallas and Chicago seem to be outliers since they have had fewer car thefts in this pandemic. Dallas police reported a 19.6 percent decrease from March to April, while Chicago police have had a 24 percent decrease since mid-March.
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Currently, the pandemic is making it easier for many criminals to steal cars since you are not driving your vehicle as often. Accordingly, if your car is stolen, you may not realize it as quickly as you would if you were still driving to work every day. Be sure to check up on your vehicle periodically to make sure it’s secure and in good condition.
Amanda Drago lives in West Chester, Ohio with her wonderful family, which includes her adorable dog, Coco. Amanda recently graduated from Miami University with degrees in both marketing and creative writing. However, if she was ever forced to change career paths, she imagines that she would train dogs for movies. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, writing, and watching Netflix. She also has a special place in her heart for theatre and purchases tickets to as many shows as she can. See more articles by Amanda.