Florida and California Top Watercraft Theft
21 Aug 2014California and Florida reach the top of the list for the most watercraft stolen in 2013.
Every year, the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) releases reports on the most stolen vehicles and watercraft. It has recently released the statistics for watercraft theft, as well as recoveries, in the U.S. in 2013.
The data collected for the report comes from the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. It included the types of watercraft stolen and their manufacturers.
In 2013, 5,537 watercrafts were stolen, according to those that were reported. This is a six percent drop from 2012, when there were 5,870 watercraft thefts.
Where Watercrafts are Stolen
Florida and California top the list for the most watercraft stolen in 2013, at 1,310 and 628, respectively. Following them was Texas with 382 thefts, Washington with 208 thefts, and Georgia with 182 thefts. The District of Columbia and Hawaii had zero thefts of watercrafts for the year.
When Watercrafts are Stolen
For the U.S. as a whole, there were about 15 thefts every day of watercraft, which translates to 106 every week and 461 a month. July was the busiest month for watercraft thefts, with a total of 691 for that month.
Not surprisingly, spring and summer tend to be more common as this is when the watercraft is used the most. February had the lowest amount of thefts at 260 in his U.S. More thefts occurred on Fridays than any other day of the week, with the least amount stolen on Thursdays.
Types of Watercrafts Stolen
The types of watercraft stolen were identical to the rank they were in 2012. This included jet skis being the most commonly stolen watercraft with 1,215 reported thefts, followed by runabouts, utility watercraft, cruisers, and lastly sailboats. The top manufacturers of watercraft stolen included Yamaha, Bombardier Corporation, Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing, Alumacraft, and Tracker Marine LP.
Deterring Watercraft Theft
Aside from always being safe when operating watercraft, boat owners are encouraged to help protect themselves against theft. The NICB recommends always locking the watercraft when it is docked, regardless of how safe they feel the area is. Any expensive equipment or accessories on the watercraft should be removed when it is not used. There are chain and lock detachable motors that can be removed when not operating the watercraft, which also helps protect against theft. Additionally, they recommend the following tips:
- Utilize a kill switch for the ignition.
- Disable it by removing batteries when it isn’t in use.
- Never leave the registration or title information inside.
- Use a trailer hitch when it is parked.
- Use a GPS tracking device.
The NICB has a vehicle theft line at 1-800-TEL-NICB for anyone that notices a boat was stolen, or who had their own watercraft stolen.
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