Winnipeg, Manitoba — The province of Manitoba officially kicked off its counterattack against catalytic converter theft on Monday, with the launch of the “Save Your Cat” program, operated in partnership with Winnipeg Crime Stoppers.
There are no felines in trees here, just a lot of Manitobans fed up with the rash of catalytic converter thefts that have plagued North America for at least the last decade.
This new website aims to direct consumers toward participating auto repair facilities that will engrave a vehicle’s VIN into the catalytic converter, in the aim of making the valuable parts easier to track.
The Winnipeg police are co-operating with the program as well, writing in a press release that they will ensure that auto recyclers do not purchase catalytic converters that have been logged by the program, as denoted by the VIN engraving as well as the application of high-visibility paint to the part.
The unveiling of the Save Your Cat program comes off the heels of a largely successful July 2022 mandate wherein automotive recyclers who buy scrap metal were required to detail every transaction involving scrap metal and hold onto those records for two years, as per a series of amendments to the Scrap Metal Act.
In fact, data from the provincial government showed that between January and September 2022, catalytic converter thefts had dropped by about 94 percent from its peak in April, when 353 thefts were reported, to just 19 reported thefts in September, two months after the act’s new regulations came into effect.
For more information on the Save Your Cat program, including how to sign on as a participating business, check out the program’s website.
