Why catalytic converters are being stolen in Metro Vancouver, who’s buying them, and the loophole in the law
A B.C. law passed 10 years ago to put a stop to metal thefts doesn’t cover vehicle catalytic converters, a “loophole” that allows thieves to sell them to scrap dealers without the same scrutiny as for other regulated metals.
Thefts of the emission-control units quadrupled in B.C. over the past five years, to 1,061 last year from 270 in 2016, costing ICBC around $2 million in claim payouts and car owners hundreds of dollars each for their comprehensive deductibles.
And there’s been another 50 per cent increase in the number of thefts that ICBC paid out in claims this year so far, prompting Richmond RCMP, with 238 thefts this year, and Vancouver police, with 425, to warn car owners to park their cars in well-lit areas or in a locked garage or yard.
Coquitlam RCMP said in a news release that the significant increase in the price of the precious metals inside the converters — platinum, palladium and especially rhodium — has made them a popular target for thieves.
Rhodium, one of earth’s rarest precious metals, is priced this week at $11,000 an ounce, up from $780 five years ago. It hit an eye-watering $29,800 an ounce in March. A converter has just a gram or two of rhodium, but police say the price hike is driving up thefts.
It’s “due mostly to high prices for precious metals, particularly rhodium, which is currently in short supply and high demand,” Tracy Shaw, CEO of the Canadian Association of Recycling Industries, said in an email.
A scrap dealer will pay up to $1,000 for a converter, depending on its origin and condition, said Jan Dimant, co-owner of Capital Salvage, who gets offered catalytic converters for sale several times a day.
Most are from a legitimate source, such as a mechanic or hobbyist who has dissembled a car, she said.
