Arizona ranks 9th in nation for catalytic converter thefts, according to State Farm auto part claims

Kye Graves, Arizona Republic
·2 min read
15

Arizona ranks ninth in the nation for catalytic converter thefts, according to new State Farm data about insurance claims.

"The theft of auto parts has skyrocketed in many states during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly when it comes to catalytic converters," State Farm Public Affairs Communication Specialist Amy Harris said in a statement.

According to State Farm, the number of claims for theft of catalytic converters grew close to 109% nationwide in the 12 months from July 2021 thru June 2022 compared to the previous 12 months.

For those unaware, catalytic converters are an integral part of a car's exhaust system that helps reduce the emission of key pollutants. Catalytic converters are also required to pass emissions tests in Arizona.

Catalytic converters: Why thieves target them and what to do about it

Since they contain rare metals such as platinum, rhodium or palladium, catalytic converters are a hot commodity in resell markets netting anywhere from several hundred to several thousand dollars.

Rhodium, for instance, was being traded Tuesday for around $14,200 per ounce, while palladium was going for nearly $2,000 and platinum $933 per ounce, according to moneymetals.com. Gold was worth $1,662 per ounce.

The data shows that Arizona had 1,155 catalytic converter thefts between July 1 2021, to June 30, 2022, placing the Grand Canyon State ninth in the country. For context, California ranked first with 10,577 catalytic converter thefts during the same time period.

  1. California - 10577

  2. Texas - 5867

  3. Illinois - 3299

  4. Washington - 2390

  5. Minnesota - 1976

  6. Oregon - 1643

  7. Ohio - 1494

  8. Pennsylvania - 1363

  9. Arizona - 1155

  10. Colorado - 1154

As previously mentioned, catalytic converter thefts have been on the rise since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. In Arizona, that number grew from seven catalytic converter theft claims in 2019 to 98 in 2020, 901 in 2021 and through the first half of 2022; 569.

In May, Arizona even passed House Bill 2652 to try and combat the rising number of thefts.

In 2021 as a whole, State Farm reported that it paid nearly $1.4 million for those 901 catalytic converter theft claims in Arizona and $925k for the 569 catalytic converter thefts in the first half of 2022.

Reach breaking news reporter Kye Graves at klgraves@gannett.com or on Twitter @kyegraves.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: AZ ranks ninth in the nation for catalytic converter thefts