Thefts of catalytic converters soared during the pandemic, driven by the skyrocketing prices of platinum group metals (PGMs). Vehicles rely on catalytic converters to reduce harmful emissions, but the valuable materials they are made of makes them an attractive target for thieves who often steal the converters from vehicles’ under carriages. Insurance claims for catalytic converter thefts grew nearly fourfold nationally from 2020 to 2022, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau.

As law enforcement agencies worked to stem the surge, they encountered a problem: It was often impossible to tie a given catalytic converter back to a specific vehicle, making it difficult to arrest or charge people for catalytic converter theft unless they were caught in the act.

“You’d stop a car at night because there was a headlight out, and in the vehicle you’d have reciprocal saws, two or three catalytic converters and a couple people with some criminal history. You knew what was happening, but you couldn’t say anything about it because possession, in and of itself, wasn’t illegal activity,” says David Silk, assistant director of the Enforcement Services Division of Maine’s Bureau of Motor Vehicles.

Jurisdictions across the country scrambled to pass laws in response, and Maine helped lead the charge by developing a solution that successfully deters theft without squelching the legitimate secondary market. Maine’s effort received a 2024 AAMVA Fraud Prevention and Detection for an Agency Award.

Legislation to Combat Theft

The cornerstone of Maine’s approach is a new law that allows recyclers to purchase used catalytic converters only when the converters have unique vehicle identification numbers (VINs) inscribed.

Most converters don’t include VINs, so Maine is accelerating the transition by enlisting auto dealers to etch VINs onto the converters of vehicles on their lots. In spring 2024, Maine hosted its first “Etch and Catch” event in which citizens brought their cars to a site in Bangor and students from Eastern Maine Community College etched VINs onto the converters.

Maine’s project began in 2021 with a working group that included stakeholders from the recycling industry and various state agency partners. The team’s early research validated both the seriousness of the problem and the lucrative market for illegal converters: One middleman in rural Maine earned more than $1 million dollars in a year by buying catalytic converters from thieves who stole them, then flipping them to recyclers.

“We got [industry] input and buy-in instead of just cramming something down their throat.”

Derek Dinsmore, Enforcement Services Division, Maine BMV

Maine’s anti-theft bill passed in 2022. It increased the administrative burden on recyclers and included an appropriation that allowed the BMV to hire three new enforcement personnel. Derek Dinsmore, director of the state’s BMV Enforcement Services Division, says the recyclers appreciated having a seat at the table and that the sale of converters wasn’t outlawed altogether.

“Instead of killing a [revenue stream], we worked with the industry to develop laws and regulations that support our ability to combat catalytic converter theft while also allowing them to conduct their business,” says Dinsmore. “We got their input and buy-in instead of just cramming something down their throat.”

Heading Off the Next Wave

Maine shifted toward implementation in 2023. Since then, the team learned the importance of educating prosecutors and other law enforcement partners on the seriousness of converter theft, which can otherwise seem like a low-value property crime.

“You have to explain that those catalytic converters are part of a theft scheme, that this is organized crime and that generally the money is used to fuel the drug trade,” says Silk.

The market price for PGMs fell right around the time Maine ramped up its implementation efforts, making it difficult to quantify the program’s impact. But anecdotally, Silk is hearing that bad actors are “finding it much more difficult” to resell stolen converters. And Maine’s team is ready to head off the next wave of converter thefts.

“We know that the market is cyclical, and that every time the metal prices go up, you have more catalytic converter thefts,” says Silk. The new law means that when that happens, Maine will have “more potential to intercept crime in progress, more seizures of illegal property and more deterrence.”