Car thefts in the region have been declining so much the Seattle area is no longer on the top-ten list nationwide for highest number of car thefts.

The Seattle metro area was ranked sixth in the nation per capita for car thefts, but a 2007 study shows that the region has dropped to 16th.

Prosecutors credit the decline to the work of local law enforcement and the King County Prosecutor's Car Theft Unit, which was formed in 2005 in an effort to crack down on the skyrocketing number of car thefts in King County.

King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg said the county has experienced a 55 percent decrease in car thefts since 2005. The office files cases on a rush basis and prosecutors are seeking longer sentences. "It is our goal to see the Seattle area drop out of the top 25. We are no longer a hospitable place to car thieves," Satterberg said.

Satterberg said that local police agencies have done an excellent job of reducing car thefts. New investigative tools are being utilized, such as bait cars with video cameras. Several local police agencies have also developed special enforcement teams that are locating and arresting repeat car thieves. Special enforcement teams have been established at the police departments for Seattle, Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Kent, and Renton.

The estimated annual savings for insurance costs as a result of the drop in car thefts is over $50 million in King County alone.