Report a theft in California to the local police department or sheriff first and keep the case number. Under California Penal Code §§ 487 and 490.2, theft becomes a felony at $950. Then follow the checklist for what was taken, below.
California at a glance
| Felony theft threshold | $950. Theft of property worth more than $950 is grand theft in California, which can be charged as a felony; theft of $950 or less is petty theft, a misdemeanor, with exceptions for firearms and repeat offenders. |
|---|---|
| Theft statute | California Penal Code §§ 487 and 490.2 |
| Grading | Petty theft (Penal Code § 490.2): $950 or less, a misdemeanor, except firearms and people with certain prior convictions. Grand theft (§ 487): more than $950, or any automobile or firearm regardless of value, or certain farm products over $250. Since December 18, 2024, Proposition 36 (§ 666.1) allows felony-level sentencing for petty theft or shoplifting by a person with two or more prior theft-related convictions. |
| Vehicle theft | Theft of an automobile is grand theft regardless of value under Penal Code § 487(d)(1). Driving or taking a vehicle without the owner's consent is also a separate offense under Vehicle Code § 10851, punishable by up to one year in county jail or by imprisonment under Penal Code § 1170(h), a fine of up to $5,000, or both. |
| State police | California Highway Patrol |
| Motor vehicles | California Department of Motor Vehicles |
| Consumer protection | California Attorney General, Consumer Protection |
| Online police reports | The Los Angeles Police Department accepts online reports for theft, theft from vehicles and identity theft inside the city when there is no emergency, no injury, no identifiable suspect, no firearm involved and the incident was not on a state highway. Other departments vary. |
| Lost or stolen gun reporting | California requires owners to report a lost or stolen firearm within five days of when they knew or reasonably should have known it was lost or stolen, according to the Giffords Law Center (an advocacy group's summary). |
| Pawn and secondhand dealers | California secondhand dealers and pawnbrokers must report the secondhand property they buy, take in trade, pawn or accept on consignment to the state Department of Justice through its electronic CAPSS system (the California Pawn and Secondhand Dealer System). |
| Official stolen property lookups | No public state-run lookup was found for California. Use the national tools in the lookup directory. |
Statute text checked on law.justia.com. Laws change; confirm the current version before relying on it.
California by the numbers
| Measure | California | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Identity theft reports to the FTC, 2024 | 139,665 reports, 356 per 100,000 residents; ranked 7 of 50 | FTC Consumer Sentinel Data Book 2024 |
| Fraud and other reports to the FTC, 2024 | 506,727 reports, 1,291 per 100,000 residents; median reported fraud loss $542; total reported fraud losses $1,678.7M | FTC Consumer Sentinel Data Book 2024 |
| Firearms reported stolen from private citizens | 8,011 a year on average, 20.3 per 100,000 residents (2019 to 2023) | ATF National Firearms Commerce and Trafficking Assessment |
These figures count reports made to federal agencies, so they measure what was reported, not every theft. National context is on the theft statistics page.
Reporting a theft in California
California has more vehicle thefts than any other state, and its large city departments push most non-emergency theft reports online. Report to the police department of the city where the theft happened, or to the county sheriff in unincorporated areas. The California Highway Patrol handles state highways and runs the state's vehicle theft programs.
The Los Angeles Police Department takes online reports for theft (its own example is a package taken from a porch), theft from a locked or unlocked vehicle, and identity theft, with no dollar limit. Online filing is only for incidents that meet all of LAPD's conditions:
- No emergency and no one injured.
- Inside the City of Los Angeles and not on a state highway.
- No identifiable perpetrator and no firearm involved.
- The filer is 18 or older with an email address.
Other cities and sheriffs run their own systems. Whatever route you use, keep the report number for your insurer, your bank and the DMV.
California theft law and the felony threshold
California's line between petty and grand theft is $950. Under Penal Code § 490.2, added by Proposition 47 in 2014, theft of $950 or less is petty theft, a misdemeanor. Under § 487, theft of more than $950 is grand theft, which can be charged as a felony.
- Petty theft: $950 or less, a misdemeanor, except firearms and people with certain prior convictions.
- Grand theft: more than $950; any automobile or firearm regardless of value; certain farm and aquacultural products over $250.
- Repeat theft (§ 666.1): since December 18, 2024, Proposition 36 lets courts impose felony-level sentences for petty theft or shoplifting when the person has two or more prior theft-related convictions.
Value is still decisive for most first offenses, so give police receipts, appraisals and serial numbers. This is general information; prosecutors decide the actual charge.
Stolen vehicles and license plates in California
Theft of an automobile is grand theft under § 487(d)(1) whatever the car is worth. Prosecutors may also charge Vehicle Code § 10851, unlawfully driving or taking a vehicle without the owner's consent, punishable by up to one year in county jail or imprisonment under Penal Code § 1170(h), a fine of up to $5,000, or both.
Report a stolen vehicle to local police or the CHP with the VIN and plate. The CHP's auto theft page describes CAL-HEAT (Californians Help Eliminate Auto Theft), a public awareness program with a hotline that refers tips to the right agency, and publishes annual vehicle theft fact sheets.
For stolen plates, the California DMV uses form REG 156, Application for Replacement Plates, Stickers, Documents. The form says a registered owner missing both plates must immediately notify a law enforcement agency, and owners whose address differs from DMV records must appear in person with the police report. We did not find a public state stolen vehicle search; see check if stolen and the stolen vehicle guide.
Pawn shops and secondhand sales
California centralizes pawn data. Secondhand dealers and pawnbrokers report the property they buy, take in trade, pawn or accept on consignment to the Department of Justice through CAPSS, the California Pawn and Secondhand Dealer System, which has run statewide since July 2015. That is why a serial number in your police report matters: it is what investigators match against dealer reports. We did not verify a holding period for this page, so ask police about it and let them contact the dealer. See our stolen property guide.
Identity theft and fraud help in California
The Attorney General's identity theft page offers first-aid steps and information sheets, and all forms of identity theft are crimes under Penal Code § 530.5. For people whose names were used in a criminal case, the Department of Justice runs the California Identity Theft Registry. It requires a court-issued Certificate of Identity Theft (form CR-150) finding the person factually innocent, plus fingerprinting; once registered, the victim can show a status notice if questioned and send it to employers.
Consumer complaints against unregulated businesses go to the Attorney General through its consumer protection pages. File with the FTC at IdentityTheft.gov. Gun owners have five days to report a lost or stolen firearm; see the stolen firearm guide and our identity theft guide.
Checklists for what was stolen
Each guide opens with a checklist in the order to act, with a free printable PDF.
- Domain names
- Identity theft
- Vehicles
- Social media and email
- SIM swap and phone numbers
- Stolen phones
- Bicycles and e-bikes
- Packages and mail
- Wallets, cards and checks
- Passports
- Firearms
- Art and collectibles
- Cryptocurrency
This page is general information about California, not legal advice. For your situation, consult an attorney licensed in California.
Sources
- California Penal Code § 487 (Justia)
- California Penal Code § 490.2 (Justia)
- California Penal Code § 666.1 (Justia)
- California Vehicle Code § 10851 (Justia)
- Los Angeles Police Department, File a Police Report
- California Highway Patrol, Auto Theft
- California DMV, REG 156 Application for Replacement Plates, Stickers, Documents
- California DOJ, CAPSS FAQs
- California Attorney General, Identity Theft
- California Attorney General, Identity Theft Registry
- California Attorney General, Protecting Consumers
- California Highway Patrol
- California Department of Motor Vehicles
- Giffords Law Center, Reporting Lost and Stolen Firearms (advocacy group)