(NEXSTAR) – More than 700,000 vehicles are stolen in any given year, but not all cars are equal targets.
The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) analyzed federal crime data to determine which cars and trucks were most frequently reported stolen in 2022. They found two pickups took the top spots in South Dakota, following a national trend.
In the U.S., the most frequently stolen vehicle was the full-size Chevrolet pickup truck, followed by full-size Ford pickups, according to the NICB analysis. That’s flipped in South Dakota: full-size Ford pickups are stolen most often.
It’s no surprise thieves target Chevy and Ford pickups – they are abundant. The Ford F-Series and the Chevy Silverado were the two top-selling vehicles last year, according to Car and Driver.
Another full-size pickup, this time GMC, was the fourth-most stolen, falling behind the Chevy Impala.
The most frequently stolen vehicles in South Dakota last year, according to the NICB, were:
- Ford pickup (full size)
- Chevy pickup (full size)
- Chevy Impala
- GMC pickup (full size)
- Chevy Malibu
- Honda Accord
- Ford Focus/RS
- Ford Fusion
- Ford Taurus
- Dodge Caravan/Grand Caravan
Nationally, reports of vehicle thefts rose 7% in 2022 over the previous year, the NICB said.
“Approximately one motor vehicle is stolen every 32 seconds, which adds up to more than one million vehicles stolen last year,” said NICB President and CEO David J. Glawe.
The FBI reported an estimated $6.4 billion was lost to vehicle theft in 2019, the last year of available data.
“There are some commonsense steps to keep cars from being stolen. First, remove valuables from the vehicle or lock them out of sight. Next, lock the doors, roll the windows all the way up, and don’t leave your keys or key fob in the car,” Glawe said.
