Auto Theft Rates In Washington Improve But Still Concerning

​​The Washington State motor vehicle theft rate was approximately 375.1 per 100,000 people in 2024, according to FinanceBuzz. This rate represents a significant volume of 29,471 vehicle thefts throughout the state that year.  

Washington is currently the 6th-worst state in America for vehicle theft. 

This high figure is an improvement from 2023, when we ranked 2nd in America (only the state of Colorado had worse theft rates) for most stolen vehicles per 100,000 people. 

What are the five safest states in America regarding auto theft in 2024?

5th safest - West Virginia (101.9 stolen vehicles per 100,000 people)

4th safest - Wyoming (95.5 per 100.000)

3rd safest - Maine (78.6 per 100,000)

2nd safest - Idaho (68.2 per 100,000)

1st safest - New Hampshire (48.4 stolen vehicles per 100,000 people)

What are the five worst states in America regarding auto theft in 2024?

5th worst - Missouri (379.6 stolen vehicles per 100,000 people)

4th worst - Nevada (394.4 per 100,000)

3rd worst - Colorado (430 per 100,000)

2nd worst - New Mexico (458.2 per 100,000)

1st worst - California (463.2 stolen vehicles per 100,000 people)

2023 was a bad year for auto theft in Washington, but not the worst

Two years ago, criminals were on record for stealing more than one million motor vehicles, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). 

According to a study by MarketWatch Guides, the 2023 rate of vehicle theft in Washington was 639.3 vehicles per 100,000 people. This was the highest rate of auto theft in Washington in almost 10 years. What was the worst year for Washingtonians losing their cars?

That would go to the dark year of 2005. In the mid-2000s, Washington recorded a whopping 783 per 100,000 people reporting a stolen vehicle.

Click here to see Washington State Motor Vehicle Thefts 1979-2018. (www.macrotrends.net. Retrieved 2025-09-17.)