Number of Valley auto thefts plummets, will insurance rates?
PHOENIX — Though it was a bad year for the economy, 2009 turned out to be a good year for drivers.Â
Officials say auto theft rates dropped Valley-wide nearly 40 percent in the first six months of 2009.
“There’s no other way to describe this, other than a substantial victory against the criminal element that dare to steal what most people consider their second most prized possession next to their home,” said Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas.
Thomas credits the drop to Valley police agencies cracking down on auto thefts, along with a team of prosecutors from his office dedicated to putting auto thieves in jail.
“Repeat offender laws are helping to put repeat offenders in prison instead of allowing them to get probation. When they’re in prison they can’t steal anybody’s cars,” explained Thomas. Â
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Between January and June of 2008, there were 12,190 vehicle thefts reported. During that same time period in 2009, those numbers dropped to 7,492.
When asked if this will affect insurance rates, Thomas responded it should, as long as the insurance companies recognize the trend, and police forces keep the heat on.
“If we’re able to keep these rates down, I would expect auto insurance companies to respond to that, and we might have some improvement in our auto insurance rates.”
Tags: auto theft rates dropped, insurance companies, insurance rates, Repeat offender laws, vehicle thefts