By
Lori Becker
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Monday, January 23, 2006
The
Yamaha Waverunner and
Kawasaki Jet Ski have joined the likes of the
Honda Accord and
Toyota Camry as the nation's "hottest" vehicles.
Mimicking the annual list of the most often stolen cars, the
Boat Owners Association of the United States, known as BoatU.S., last week released its first list of the nation's top 10 stolen vessels.
Dominating the list are personal watercraft, with Yamaha, Kawasaki and
Bombardier/Sea-Doo taking the top three spots.
"They're just so easy to take," said
Scott Croft, spokesman for the association, an Alexandria, Va.-based advocacy group for recreational boaters with 630,000 members. "Any kind of vehicle can pull up to a (personal watercraft) trailer and pull it away. A larger boat requires some more thought ahead of time."
Seaworthy, the newsletter for the BoatU.S. marine insurance division, compiled the list of stolen recreational vessels based on the association's theft claims over the past five years.
Here are the top 10 by manufacturer, along with their chances per 10,000 for being stolen: Yamaha, 15.3; Kawasaki, 12.8; Bombardier/Sea-Doo, 8.19;
Mako, 7;
Chaparral, 5.22;
Regal, 4.92;
Wellcraft, 3.7;
Boston Whaler, 3.36;
Four Winns, 3.06;
Chris Craft, 2.8.
Of those stolen boats, 90 percent were on a trailer, with an average size of about 20 feet. Less-mobile vessels such as sailboats and heavy trawlers apparently are unattractive targets for thieves.
And many of the boats that made the list are among the most popular, said Croft, who hopes the list will encourage boaters to be more cautious.
"Much like Honda and Camry, there's simply a lot of them, and that presents more targets," he said. "It may behoove you to buy a lock or put it in storage rather than leave it in your driveway."
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