Imagine this: You have worked a double shift, had a stressful day overall, and it is late at night.
You still need to get home in time to feed your family and run some errands. You get a strange feeling as you walk to your usual street parking spot. There is a flaw. Your heart starts to race as you get closer to your car, or rather, where your car should be. It is not visible anywhere. Before calling 911, you look everywhere frantically. You are hoping for the safe return of your vehicle by the time the police arrive at the scene. You are trying to remember as many details as you can about it.
How might you respond on the off chance that your vehicle was taken? Do you know how to file a stolen vehicle insurance claim? You need to remain composed and clear-headed throughout the confusion and rush of adrenaline.
Your first step should be to confirm that there is no other possible explanation for why your car is missing. Did you park in an illegal manner, putting you at risk of having your car towed? Is it possible for your vehicle to be repossessed? It can be very embarrassing to file a police report and insurance claim for a stolen vehicle only to find out later that it wasn’t really stolen. It’s time to start the car insurance claim process once you’ve ruled out other possible explanations for your vehicle’s disappearance and determined that it was stolen.
The most important takeaways are that if someone steals your car, your insurance won’t be able to cover the loss if you have comprehensive coverage.
Some insurance companies have a waiting period after you file a claim because they want to see if the stolen vehicle can be recovered.
You will need homeowner’s or renter’s insurance instead of auto insurance to cover any personal belongings in your stolen vehicle.