What Does Your Insurance Do When Your Car Is Stolen?

When you discover that you cannot find your car, and before reporting it stolen, there are a couple of important actions that you should take. The first is to make sure that your vehicle wasn't parked illegally and towed away or that it was not repossessed because you're behind on payments. Unfortunately, these possibilities can happen, and if it was claimed or impounded by a creditor, you do not want to file a police report, as it is technically not stolen. If you can confirm that none of these scenarios apply to your individual situation, you need to immediately file a police report.

If you have a tracking device on your vehicle, this could help you recover it, but after contacting the police, you'll want to call your car insurance company next. You will need to let them know that the vehicle was stolen, and you may do some research by asking “What does insurance do when your car is stolen?” as soon as possible after you file this initial report. If your vehicle has been stolen and ultimately gets recovered, you will also want to inform your car insurance company as soon as possible. 

In the event that the car has been damaged during the time that it was stolen, you may be able to use your comprehensive coverage to assist with paying for repairs minus your deductible and up to any limits. You may also be able to get a discount on your car insurance by having anti-theft devices installed. These tracking devices or passive alarms can help decrease the possibility of having the car stolen overall.

Stolen Coverage Comprehensive Protection

If someone steals your vehicle and it cannot be recovered by the police or through your own search, the insurance company will likely cut you a check for what is the current value of the car. This is only true when you have comprehensive coverage of the vehicle. Comprehensive coverage will, of course, also cover those damages made to the vehicle while it was stolen, but your comprehensive deductible does apply. 

Many people assume that full coverage car insurance is needed in order to protect against the possibility of theft, but there is no actual full coverage insurance product. People may be referring to comprehensive coverage when they talk about it. 

Comprehensive coverage is often available at an affordable rate and can give you a great deal of peace of mind, as it will also cover glass breakage and vandalism. Remember that your car insurance does not cover personal items stolen from your vehicles, such as a briefcase, laptop, or cellphone, but you might be able to turn to your homeowner's policy or your renter's policy, even if those items were stolen while the car was not located on your property. Make sure that you consider electronic device insurance as well to help protect your property in these specific situations. 

One of the most common problems associated with insurance companies after your vehicle is stolen is getting the appropriate payment sent back to you. Comprehensive insurance does help cover theft of the vehicle itself, but you will likely need to use the bluebook value on the vehicle in order to claim that the insurance company is not properly reimbursing you for the amount that your vehicle was worth. 

All of these are complex questions that should only be handled by an experienced and knowledgeable lawyer. If you find that your vehicle was stolen and you are arguing with the insurance company about the amount returned to you, or if you believe they have been involved in bad faith actions while dealing with you, such as refusing to payout your claim or delaying your claim unnecessarily, a lawyer can help you navigate the process of filing a legal claim directly against this insurance carrier. These issues are very complicated, and it is important for you to proceed carefully by reviewing all your options and having an experienced lawyer investigate the situation. A lawyer can tell you more about whether or not the insurance company has indeed violated your rights and about the legal recourse available to you in these cases.

You might assume that there is little to no benefit to letting the police know that your vehicle has been stolen if you don't have any evidence. Especially if you live in a larger city and are concerned that you may not be able to locate the person who stole your vehicle, you might be tempted to simply report this to your vehicle insurance company. However, it is important to notify the police because it is always a possibility that they will be able to locate your stolen vehicle. 

Furthermore, this illustrates to your car insurance company that you are taking this situation seriously and that your vehicle was indeed stolen. Make sure that you file a report as soon as possible after it has been stolen since the police have the best opportunity to recover stolen vehicles early on.

You should contact your insurance company as soon as possible if your vehicle is returned to you with damage. You will need to provide evidence of the damage that occurred to your vehicle when it was stolen in order to show that the insurance company owes you benefits. This can be an exceptionally frustrating situation, even though you were happy that your vehicle has been returned to you. The specifics of your car insurance policy will help you to determine whether or not you have grounds to file a legal claim and receive compensation for a damaged vehicle. 

The person accused might face criminal charges, but this is separate from your process of recovering compensation or repairs through your own car insurance company. A criminal case can certainly help bolster your allegations of damage done to the car, however. 

Review the specifics of your car insurance policy to learn more about the situations in which your car insurance company may be responsible for providing you with a rental car. Not all car insurance policies automatically come with rental car provisions or payments as a result of a stolen vehicle.

Contact the experts at Morgan & Morgan today if you need help dealing with your insurance company regarding a stolen vehicle. There’s no reason to handle this on your own; get the assurance and assistance you need to move forward with you life after this unfortunate event.