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Background <p>Each year, hundreds of thousands of firearms are stolen, and vehicles are the leading source of firearm thefts in the United States. A precursor to these events is leaving a firearm in a vehicle unattended. Yet, the correlates and patterns of leaving firearms unattended in vehicles remain poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence, correlates, and patterns of leaving firearms unattended in vehicles among US firearm owners.</p> Methods <p>Using a cross-sectional survey of firearm-owning adults administered online by YouGov in February–March 2026 (<i>n</i> = 1,856), ordinal logistic regression examined correlates of leaving firearms in unattended vehicles, including sociodemographic, perceptions of safety, strength of state firearm policies, and geographic factors. Among those reporting vehicle firearm storage (<i>n</i> = 468), firearm type, storage location, and reasons for leaving firearms in vehicles were descriptively examined.</p> Results <p>Overall, 73.2% of respondents reported never leaving a firearm in a vehicle unattended, 14.7% reported rarely, 5.7% reported sometimes, 3.2% reported most of the time, and 3.2% reported always. Male sex (<i>v</i>. female) (aOR = 1.48; 95% CI, 1.07–2.06), non-Hispanic Black race/ethnicity (<i>v</i>. non-Hispanic White) (aOR = 2.06; 95% CI, 1.17–3.61), prior firearm theft (<i>v</i>. no prior firearm theft) (aOR = 2.54; 95% CI, 1.60–4.03), higher perception of fear of being shot (aOR = 1.09, 95% CI = 1.03, 1.15), higher perceived likelihood of defensive gun use (1.08, 95% CI = 1.03, 1.14), conservative ideology (<i>v</i>. very liberal) (aOR = 2.46, 95% CI = 1.34, 4.52), and rural residence (<i>v</i>. metropolitan) (aOR = 2.21; 95% CI, 1.49–3.26) were associated with higher odds of leaving firearms in a vehicle more frequently. Among respondents who reported leaving firearms in vehicles unattended, handguns were the most common type of firearm left in vehicles (74.5%). Respondents most commonly reported leaving a firearm in the center console (24.6%) or the glovebox (16.7%); 19.7% used a designed for firearm storage. Top reasons for storing in a vehicle included legal carry restrictions, wanting a firearm nearby, and convenience.</p> Conclusions <p>Future research, intervention development, and testing are needed to reduce the leaving of firearms in vehicles unattended.</p>

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Prevalence, correlates, and patterns of leaving firearms unattended in vehicles among US firearm owners

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

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  • 发表日期：

    2026年5月24日

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  • Alexander Testa,
  • Jennifer Thompson,
  • Chelsea Carriker,
  • Dylan Jackson,
  • Daniel Semenza,
  • Jack Tsai

摘要

Background

Each year, hundreds of thousands of firearms are stolen, and vehicles are the leading source of firearm thefts in the United States. A precursor to these events is leaving a firearm in a vehicle unattended. Yet, the correlates and patterns of leaving firearms unattended in vehicles remain poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence, correlates, and patterns of leaving firearms unattended in vehicles among US firearm owners.

Methods

Using a cross-sectional survey of firearm-owning adults administered online by YouGov in February–March 2026 (n = 1,856), ordinal logistic regression examined correlates of leaving firearms in unattended vehicles, including sociodemographic, perceptions of safety, strength of state firearm policies, and geographic factors. Among those reporting vehicle firearm storage (n = 468), firearm type, storage location, and reasons for leaving firearms in vehicles were descriptively examined.

Results

Overall, 73.2% of respondents reported never leaving a firearm in a vehicle unattended, 14.7% reported rarely, 5.7% reported sometimes, 3.2% reported most of the time, and 3.2% reported always. Male sex (v. female) (aOR = 1.48; 95% CI, 1.07–2.06), non-Hispanic Black race/ethnicity (v. non-Hispanic White) (aOR = 2.06; 95% CI, 1.17–3.61), prior firearm theft (v. no prior firearm theft) (aOR = 2.54; 95% CI, 1.60–4.03), higher perception of fear of being shot (aOR = 1.09, 95% CI = 1.03, 1.15), higher perceived likelihood of defensive gun use (1.08, 95% CI = 1.03, 1.14), conservative ideology (v. very liberal) (aOR = 2.46, 95% CI = 1.34, 4.52), and rural residence (v. metropolitan) (aOR = 2.21; 95% CI, 1.49–3.26) were associated with higher odds of leaving firearms in a vehicle more frequently. Among respondents who reported leaving firearms in vehicles unattended, handguns were the most common type of firearm left in vehicles (74.5%). Respondents most commonly reported leaving a firearm in the center console (24.6%) or the glovebox (16.7%); 19.7% used a designed for firearm storage. Top reasons for storing in a vehicle included legal carry restrictions, wanting a firearm nearby, and convenience.

Conclusions

Future research, intervention development, and testing are needed to reduce the leaving of firearms in vehicles unattended.