Chula Vista police continue push to prevent catalytic converter theft with numbers on decline

Pictured the underside of a Toyota Prius with the catalytic converter in the middle of the image File photo courtesy of National Insurance Crime Bureau The Chula Vista Police Department held an Engrave and Save event Saturday in an effort to reduce catalytic converter theft About vehicles were brought in by local residents to take advantage of the free operation at the city s Populace Works Center according to city administrators The goal declared Police Chief Roxana Kennedy is to help make residents of Chula Vista less desirable targets With the use of two special engraving tools purchased with funds from the Chula Vista Police Foundation catalytic converters were inscribed with their respective automobile identification numbers This simple act may deter theft and assist police in reviewing stolen parts Kennedy declared It s one strategy in a larger effort to address catalytic converter theft in Chula Vista While catalytic converter thefts rose sharply in and according to modern information from State Farm auto asserts they have been declining over the past two years The insurance agency saw a drop in catalytic converter theft contends for the first half of compared to the same period in California however along with Illinois New York Texas and Florida continues to be among the top states for such contends According to the National Automotive Dealers Association stolen catalytic converters can be sold for anywhere from to on the black territory but the replacement cost for casualties is much higher The cost to install a new catalytic converter averages over The the bulk common targets for catalytic converter theft in California the National Insurance Crime Bureau communicated include several Toyotas the Prius Tundra Sequoia and Tacoma along with the Honda Element Accord and CR-V and Ford Econoline F- and Excursion Chula Vista s free event was informed on social media and required a reservation Those who were unable to sign up were encouraged to follow the CVPD on social media for future opportunities Participants must have a right now registered van to take advantage of the organization