Albuquerque Making Headway in Lowering Auto Theft

Two years at the top of NICB's Hot Spots rankings prompts action

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Dec 11, 2018, 06:00 ET

DES PLAINES, Ill., Dec. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Albuquerque officials say they are starting to see the results of their renewed fight against vehicle theft with an estimated one-third reduction in thefts for the first nine months of the year. This follows two years in a row that the National Insurance Crime Bureau's (NICB) annual Hot Spots rankings had the Albuquerque metro area at the top based on vehicle thefts per 100,000 population.

The efforts of the Albuquerque community are documented in this video produced by the NICB.

The NICB held a fraud summit in Albuquerque two years ago to bring together law enforcement and other concerned parties to address the theft issue. One of the recommendations was funding for an Auto Theft Prevention Authority to coordinate partnership among local and state law enforcement agencies and to focus on getting cases through the judicial system. That authority was created by the legislature and began operating early this year under the state Superintendent of Insurance.

The theft rate also became an issue in the mayor's race with candidates vowing a hard line on criminals.

Law enforcement had long complained that the judicial system created a revolving door for repeat offenders with car thieves unlikely to spend much time in jail after being released on their own recognizance. Cooperating agencies worked with the Prevention Authority to identify 66 repeat offenders and to urge judges to rethink releasing them to go back to stealing more vehicles.

State and local crime fighters say more needs to be done to tighten the penalties for vehicle theft and to put thieves behind bars. They cite the area's drug problem as one of the driving forces behind the high theft rate as drug users steal cars to commit other crimes to support their addiction. As the theft rate has declined, they say other crimes are decreasing as well.

The 2018 Hot Spots report will be compiled and released in mid-2019. Albuquerque hopes to no longer be at number one when that list comes out.

Anyone with information concerning insurance fraud or vehicle theft can report it anonymously by calling toll-free 800-TEL-NICB (800-835-6422), texting keyword "fraud" to TIP411 (847411) or submitting a form on our website. Or, download the NICB Fraud Tips app on your iPhone or Android device.

About the National Insurance Crime Bureau: Headquartered in Des Plaines, Ill., the NICB is the nation's leading not-for-profit organization exclusively dedicated to preventing, detecting and defeating insurance fraud and vehicle theft through data analytics, investigations, training, legislative advocacy and public awareness. The NICB is supported by more than 1,100 property and casualty insurance companies and self-insured organizations. NICB member companies wrote over $461 billion in insurance premiums in 2017, or more than 81 percent of the nation's property/casualty insurance. That includes more than 95 percent ($218 billion) of the nation's personal auto insurance. To learn more visit www.nicb.org.

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SOURCE National Insurance Crime Bureau