Southern California Topped Catalytic Converter Theft Claim Markets

The Southern California regions of Los Angeles and Orange County are again the top spots for catalytic converter theft claims.

The regions topped the list for the eighth consecutive quarter in a new report of markets for the most frequent insurance-related catalytic converter theft that examines data through the fourth quarter of 2023.

The report was conducted by Premiere Services, a provider of insurance-based replacement services, and CAT Converter Express, a provider of catalytic converter theft restoration services for insurance theft and vandalism claims.

California and Texas had four markets in the top 20 on the list. The highest increases in reported thefts year-over-year were in Chicago, Portland and Seattle, the report shows.

Top 20 catalytic converter theft markets of 2023:

• Los Angeles/Orange County
• Houston
• Oakland/San Francisco
• Chicago
• Baltimore / DC
• Atlanta
• Phoenix
• Portland
• Seattle
• Sacramento
• New York City/Newark
• Philadelphia
• Austin/San Antonio
• Las Vegas
• San Diego
• Denver
• Dallas/Fort Worth
• Detroit
• El Paso
• Minneapolis

For 2023, frequency across all markets combined has been up 26% year-to-date and nearly 155% since 2020. The average cost of repair also continues to climb, with an average of 14% increase in cost per claim, according to the report.