Does Auto Insurance Cover Theft? – Kelley Blue Book
With vehicles commanding such high prices these days, it ’ randomness more important than always to protect yourself from a fiscal loss if person steals your car .
You know your car policy can cover repairs and injuries if you ’ re in an accident. But what about car larceny ?
With the average price of a raw vehicle hitting fresh highs — at $ 45,031 in September 2021 — you ’ ll want to find out what coverage you need to protect yourself from car larceny or cable car wrong from thieves.
According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau ( NICB ), vehicle thefts skyrocketed to 880,595 countrywide in 2020, up from 794,019 in 2019. That ’ s about one steal fomite every 36 seconds, the NICB said .
If you want to make sure you ’ ra protected, it ’ mho authoritative to understand the type of coverage you need, how it works, and what it will and won ’ metric ton wage to repair or replace .
How Do I Know if My Auto Insurance Policy Covers Theft?
Finding out if your car insurance covers larceny is simple. If you have comprehensive, you ’ ra covered. If you don ’ triiodothyronine, you ’ ra not covered for what ’ second sometimes called grand larceny car. When you purchase an policy policy, there are lots of options from which to choose. But comprehensive examination is the lone coverage that protects you and your vehicle against larceny .
What Comprehensive Covers
Having comprehensive coverage can help protect you if :
- Police Don’t Recover your Vehicle. If someone steals your car and the police don’t get it back, comprehensive coverage will pay to replace it — up to the vehicle’s actual cash value.
- Your vehicle gets stolen and recovered. According to the NICB, law enforcement recovered 690,539 stolen vehicles in 2020, representing 78% of the total stolen. However, when your car gets recovered, it doesn’t mean it’s in the same condition as before the thief took off with it. If the police recover your car and there’s damage, your insurer will pay for repair costs.
- Car parts get stolen. Sometimes car thieves won’t drive off with the entire vehicle. Instead, they’ll help themselves to certain parts, such as the tires, rims, or the catalytic converter. If parts of your car are stolen, comprehensive coverage will pay to replace them.
- Your car receives damage during a break-in. When someone steals or attempts to steal your vehicle or parts of your vehicle, comprehensive covers damage that occurs during the theft. So, if a car thief breaks a window or door lock or goes drag racing at 3 a.m. and crashes your car, your policy will cover you.
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What Comprehensive Doesn’t Cover
comprehensive examination coverage can help pay for fomite repair or substitute costs. however, car indemnity doesn ’ t cover personal property like the laptop you left on the front buttocks or the stage set of golf clubs that you stored in the proboscis after a car larceny .
But your homeowner ’ south policy or renter ’ mho policy might .
How Does Comprehensive Coverage Work?
In cosmopolitan, comprehensive coverage pays up to the vehicle ’ s actual cash measure at the time a cover incident occurs. But before your coverage kicks in, you must pay your deductible. After you cover the deductible, your policy company will pay for the stay expenses up to the current market respect of your vehicle .
What Is Actual Cash Value?
“ Comprehensive coverage is going to pay you the actual cash respect of your cable car minus your deductible, ” says Josh Damico, frailty president of the united states of policy operations at Jerry, a car insurance comparison service .
But that doesn ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate mean the insurance company will write you a check for what you paid for the car. The actual cash value of your fomite is how much the vehicle is deserving in today ’ s dollars. Because cars depreciate so cursorily, you probably won ’ metric ton be able to buy a brand-new version of the vehicle you ’ rhenium driving with the money from the indemnity caller — unless you have fresh vehicle replacement coverage .
Find out how you can calculate depreciation on your vehicle .
If you purchased new fomite substitution coverage, the insurance company would reimburse you for the cost of a brand fresh vehicle, not the deprecate value, of a similar car. This type of coverage is typically only available for the foremost year you own a car, and you must be the master owner .
Gap policy may besides help if you purchased this accessory coverage. If your car gets stolen and the insurance company says it ’ south totaled, this policy covers the gap between what you owe on a loan or lease and what the insurance company paid you for the deprecate value of the totaled car.
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How Do I Know How Much My Car is Worth?
According to Damico, the easiest way to find out the estimate respect of your vehicle is to use a web site like Kelley Blue Book. You would enter all the details the indemnity adjuster uses. This includes the vehicle designation number ( VIN ), year, make, model, and features on the car when it came from the manufacturer. If you added custom features after buying the car, they wouldn ’ t be included in the value unless you have custom equipment coverage .
If you disagree with the adjuster ’ s appraisal of the car ’ south value, you can ask to speak to them so you can review the factors that went into determining the actual cash measure, or ACV .
“ The insured can absolutely have a conversation with the insurance company to make sure they have all of the features that were on the vehicle included in the estimate, ” Damico said. “ It ’ s not unheard of for an adjuster to miss a feature of speech that was on a car. Those numbers are not firm ; they ’ rhenium not final examination. They can be discussed, and to some extent, negotiated. ”
Steps to Take if Your Car Gets Stolen
If person steals your cable car, there are several things you need to do .
1. Make Sure the Car Got Stolen
This step might seem silly. After all, your cable car is missing. person stole it, justly ? not necessarily. “ The first thing we ask our customers to do is to make sure it was actually stolen, ” Damico said. What you do adjacent depends on where you parked your car .
If you parked it in your driveway, check with everyone who had access to it. possibly person borrowed it without telling you. If you parked it in a lot or on the street, make sure the cable car did not get impounded. You can check by calling the police department and giving them your license plate numeral. Or sometimes there are signs in parking lots and on the street that list the call count you need to call to find out if it got towed .
2. File a Police Report
“ Once you ’ re sure it ’ sulfur been stolen, the beginning thing you want to do is file a patrol report — ideally within 24 hours of the car being stolen, ” Damico said. Be prepared to provide as much information as potential about the vehicle, including :
- Your driver’s license number
- The car’s VIN
- The vehicle’s license plate number
- Year, make, and model of the vehicle
- The car’s last known location
- The approximate time the car was stolen
- A list of your belongings that were inside the car
- GPS tracking system, if available
“ If there are any name marks like a bumper spine, dents, or a dent, that ’ randomness besides helpful, ” according to Damico .
3. Contact Your Auto Insurance Company
After you notify the police, you need to report the larceny to your insurance company and file an car indemnity claim. The indemnity company will ask for much of the same data you gave the patrol. Having that data readily available can help the process go more smoothly .
“ If you can get a copy of the report, that ’ s the beginning thing the carrier ’ south going to want. You may not get a replicate of the patrol report right aside. [ But ] if you have that available, it can very speed things up with the mailman, ” Damico advised .
4. Contact Your Homeowners or Renter’s Insurance Company
many people have a common misconception that their car policy company will cover larceny of personal property if person steals goods from their vehicle, Damico says. But that ’ s not dependable. however, your homeowner ’ south insurance or tenant ’ randomness policy might .
If personal items were in your cable car, you might need to file a claim with your homeowners or renter ’ second insurance mailman .
How Long Does it Take for My Theft Claim Payout?
“ Auto insurance companies will only deny a call if they have found and proven that there was some type of fraud associated with the claim, ” says Damico. But that doesn ’ thymine mean the indemnity caller resolves your claim overnight. The fourth dimension it takes to settle a claim depends on the insurance company. unlike companies have different timelines.
“ What we broadly see is a two- to four-week period [ to see ] if the police can locate the fomite, ” Damico said. “ It largely depends on whether the carrier suspects there might be any type of fraud going on with the claim. ” If the carrier suspects imposter, it may take longer .
If you ’ re used to driving your car every day, two to four weeks is a long time to be without a jell of wheels. And you ’ ll need a manner to get around while you ’ ra waiting for the patrol to find it. If your policy includes lease car reimbursement, your insurance company will pay for the cost of a rental while the patrol search for your vehicle. If not, you ’ ll have to cover the monetary value out-of-pocket or find another way to get around .
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