SAN ANTONIO – Nearly 19,000 car thefts were reported to San Antonio police over a 12-month period, according to records obtained and analyzed by KSAT.
The thefts are so widespread that mapping one year of them covers the entire city of San Antonio, from Stone Oak to Brooks City Base and from La Cantera to The Forum.
To put that in perspective: The number of cars stolen in San Antonio over the last 12 months could fill the Frost Bank Center’s parking lot — which holds about 7,000 cars — more than two-and-a-half times.
“It’s definitely a lot of auto thefts, for sure, and it has increased over the years, but this year, we are seeing a decline,” a detective with SAPD’s vehicle crimes unit told KSAT under the condition of anonymity because they are undercover.
KSAT’s data analysis appears to show that car thefts are not limited to a specific area. Instead, all San Antonio residents should be mindful of protecting their property.
“Over half the cars that were stolen, they left their cars unlocked. The other half, they left their keys inside,” the detective said.
The data displayed in the searchable map below breaks down reported auto theft cases to police across San Antonio from May 1, 2023, to May 1, 2024. These figures do not include thefts reported to Bexar County Sheriff’s Office or other municipalities in the area, like Alamo Heights.
Each point on the map represents a reported vehicle theft. You can click any point to see information about the report, such as the time and date of the incident, address, and make and model of the car.
You can also use the search bar allows you to search by address and even ZIP code so you can see reports from around your neighborhood.
Explore the interactive map below:
KSAT obtained this data through an open records request and explored it using mapping and geospatial analysis technology from Esri, a GIS mapping software company.
50+ reported thefts per day; thieves busiest on the weekends
From May 2023 to May 2024, KSAT found that auto thefts happened at a rate of:
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1,564 reported thefts a month
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51.3 thefts a day
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2.1 thefts an hour
We also found that Saturday and Monday had the most reported auto thefts, at 15.12% and 15.04%, respectively. Wednesday had the lowest number of reports, at 12.91%, the data showed. In the data provided by SAPD, the “date” is believed to be when police took the report, not when the actual theft occurred.
The data that KSAT obtained suggests that auto thefts were some of the most prevalent crimes in San Antonio last year, and police seem to agree.
But why are the cars being stolen?
“Smuggling, whether it’s narcotics or persons going to the border. We also see them using the stolen cars to buy and resell the parts,” SAPD’s detective told KSAT.
How the numbers have evolved
San Antonio police say there has been a decline in auto thefts in 2024 and the data KSAT obtains appears to back that up.
The average monthly auto thefts over the last six months dropped 17% from the previous six months, the records show.
Looking at police data over the last 5 years shows a steady increase for several years up to the end of 2023.
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7,781 reported car thefts in 2019
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6,707 reported in 2020
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8,886 in 2021
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12,551 in 2022
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19,225 in 2023
SAPD Chief William McManus discussed the 53.2% uptick in vehicle crimes from 2022 to 2023 during a January public safety meeting.
Car theft can affect everyone
Auto thefts are not just an issue in the urban core; it is a county-wide trend.
The data shows that of all auto thefts reported to SAPD, 13,373 occurred in the City of San Antonio. The remaining 5,411 thefts were reported in neighboring cities, the data showed.
It isn’t clear if the cars were stolen in those addresses or if that’s where the owner lives.
We asked the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office for its data on vehicle thefts. While they could not provide a list of all addresses like SAPD did, they said in an email to KSAT that they were “looking at over 800 incidents” from Jan. 1, 2024, to May 31, 2024.
Auto thefts in downtown and across the North Side and Interstate 10 corridor featured prominently in the data. The image below shows the thefts clustered by parts of San Antonio.
What are the most common makes, models of vehicles stolen in San Antonio?
McManus, during the public safety meeting, compared the explosion of auto thefts to a social media trend showing people how to break into the faulty ignition systems in KIAs and Hyundais.
KSAT’s analysis found that Kia and Hyundai accounted for 48.2% of all automobiles stolen from May 1, 2023, to May 1, 2024.
While both makes were prominent in the data that KSAT obtained, other vehicles were also stolen often.
KSAT’s analysis identified the five most common makes and models that were reported stolen to SAPD.
In 2023, the top five most stolen vehicles were models manufactured by Kia (2), Hyundai (2), and Chevrolet, according to a report from the National Crime Information Bureau.
Those numbers appear to fall in line with national trends as well.
Three of the five models featured in this data are among the top 10 frequently stolen vehicles in 2022, according to the Insurance Information Institute.
Preventative measures
As far as protecting your vehicle, police encourage the public to remove valuables from their vehicles.
“A lot of times, criminals are looking for things they can use in crimes later, especially guns,” said SAPD public information officer Ricardo Guzman. “Don’t leave anything worth of value inside your cars, laptops, backpacks, things you just bought. … That all attracts criminals to your vehicle.”
It also helps to understand the different types of insurance coverage. According to USAA, one type is most relevant for those who experience auto theft: comprehensive coverage.
Comprehensive coverage would cover everything from smashed windows to picked locks and even scratched paint. While the coverage may not prevent the actual theft, it could help you afterward.
Manufacturers have attempted to fight back, too.
In February 2023, Hyundai began sending out software updates to affected vehicles.
At the time, the surge in thefts drew ire from insurance companies. State Farm even went as far as to avoid taking on new customers who drove Kia or Hyundai vehicles, an April 2023 story from KSAT showed.
A partial statement from the insurance provider read:
“State Farm has temporarily stopped accepting new customer applications in some states for certain model years and trim levels of Hyundai and Kia vehicles because theft losses for these vehicles have increased dramatically. This is a serious problem impacting our customers and the entire auto insurance industry.
Both automakers were hit with a class-action lawsuit concerning the spate of thefts affecting drivers across the country.
In August 2023, a judge denied approval of the class-action settlement, citing what they called “weak proposed remedies.”
On a local scale, Hyundai visited San Antonio in late May as part of an anti-theft campaign to address car owners’ concerns.
Dave Vandelinde, vice president of Hyundai America, said the vehicles most in need of the update include all 2011-2021 models with key ignitions, as opposed to those with push-button starts.
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