Heavy Equipment Theft Shows Slight Decline but Low Recovery Rate

Heavy equipment thefts are decreasing, says a new study by the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), showing a 7 percent decline from 11,705 thefts in 2011 to less than 11,000 thefts in 2012.

There has been an overall 19 percent reduction in heavy equipment thefts since 2008. However, only 20 percent of heavy equipment stolen in 2012—at a cost of about $300 million—was ever recovered. 

The NICB ranked Texas as the number one state for heavy equipment thefts in 2012, logging 1,401 crimes, mostly in Houston. North Carolina was the second state with 1,037 thefts, followed by Florida (890) and California (686). These four states accounted for 37 percent of the total number of robberies in 2012, although every state has a statistic for equipment crime. 

On the other hand, those same states also made the NICB's top-four list for theft recoveries.

“In 2012, law enforcement recovered most machines in the same state where they were stolen,” says the NICB report. “The bigger the state and the more demand for equipment within that state, the lower the chance that the equipment will leave the state.” 

Ohio entered the NICB's list of top-ten states for heavy equipment theft for the first time this year, possibly because of a recent boom in the state's natural gas mining industry.

Wheeled machines were the most commonly stolen types of equipment in 2012, including mower, riding or garden tractors, which accounted for nearly half of all heavy equipment thefts.  Loaders such as skid steers and backhoes were second-most popular among thieves, making up 18 percent of last year's thefts. Tractors followed at 13 percent.

“Two key factors determine the type of equipment that thieves are most likely to steal: value and mobility. For instance, large bulldozers are valuable but seldom stolen, as they are difficult to move,” says the report. “Dozers and wheel loaders are the most valuable types of equipment in the top ten, but backhoes and skid steers are easier to transport. Therefore, the latter group represents a greater percentage of thefts.”

Brands are also valuable to thieves: more than 2,300 John Deere products were reported stolen in 2012, followed by 837 Kubota Tractor Corp. items and 680 pieces of Bobcat merchandise. 

Caterpillar, Toro, Case, Crafstman, Exmark, Husqvarna and Cub Cadet Corp. products were also very popular with equipment thieves. The NICB says these manufacturers make the most compact “and thus most easily stolen” equipment. Newer-make items were stolen most frequently than those created before 2010.

Thefts doubled between February 2012, the month with the lowest equipment crimes, and June 2012, as longer summer days led to increased equipment activity and the end of a crop growth cycle. A majority of thefts occur when equipment is away from the owners' property, when they don't have a chance to watch it while in storage or in transit.

Late summer, however, is the best time for equipment recovery as construction and farming season slows, prompting contractors using stolen equipment to abandon it at the end of a job to avoid costly maintenance and storage.

The NICB urges contractors and equipment theft investigators to focus on work site security and to look for red flags such as unusual location, missing decals, altered paint and missing identification plates.

The report concludes, “the area that needs the most improvement is also the area that promises immediate results: supplying accurate information to law enforcement 24 hours a day through the National Equipment Register (NER) and the NICB”.