What to do if your car is stolen is something you need to know, as it will help you to minimize the collateral damage of the theft. One of the most important things you have to do is file a complaint as soon as possible. In this way, if the thieves use your vehicle to commit another crime, you can certify that the car was no longer in your hands when the events occurred.
Steps to follow:
The first thing you should do if your car is stolen is file a police report. The sooner you report it, the more likely your stolen vehicle will be found. In addition, in the event that thieves use your car to commit another type of crime, you will be protected from possible responsibilities by proving that you had reported the theft.
If your car is stolen, go to file the complaint with all the documentation that proves that you are the owner of the vehicle; although the most important thing is that you bring your DNI, that you provide the license plate and the number of the insurance policy. If you had the documents of the car inside the car, leave a record of this in the complaint. You must also report other goods that you had inside the car when it was stolen, such as a child seat, a suitcase, GPS or a laptop.
In addition, it is important that you provide all the details of the car theft. Thus, questions that may be superfluous to you, may be very useful to the agents in clarifying the crime. For example, if you saw people hanging around the place where they usually park the vehicle or cars parked in your neighborhood that are not known to you in the days before the robbery, explain it to the agents. These will give you a copy of the complaint, but ask for it in case they get lost. You will need it to send it to your insurer.
Thus, after filing the complaint, what you have to do if your car is stolen is notify your insurance agent or your insurance company directly. You can put your policy on hold until the car appears, without canceling it. In addition, you can inform yourself of the coverage you have in case your car does not appear again. Most companies establish a period of approximately one month to begin the procedures for compensation for car theft, in case the vehicle appears during that period.
You will know that there is a procedure that can be done with the DGT to temporarily remove a car due to theft. However, you should not do this procedure if your car is stolen since the police are in charge of carrying it out on your behalf when you are going to file the complaint. In any case, confirm at the police station that the temporary discharge has been made.
If after a month your stolen car does not appear, you will have to carry out all the procedures with your insurer to be compensated. You must present the following:
- Report theft.
- DNI.
- All sets of car keys stolen.
The insurer will make an assessment to determine the amount that will be delivered for the theft of the car. If the car is new and you have comprehensive insurance, you will probably get a new car; if not, you will have a market value, that is, they will calculate the cost of the stolen vehicle based on how old it is and they will give you an economic amount in exchange.
