STOP CAR THEFT!

Having your car stolen is a fraught and emotional time, but it is important to stay calm and follow the correct procedures to deal with the matter as swiftly as possible.

 The most important thing to do in any situation is assess your own personal safety first. No matter how expensive the car was, your own well-being  is more important than the car.  So check to make sure that you are in a position of safety.

 

If the crime involved a break in to your home, make sure that the criminals have left the house. Do not try and approach or confront anyone, as it may not be clear if the are carrying any sort of weapon, and get yourself to safety.

 

If threatened for your car keys – surrender them, your health and the health of your family is more important. If you are in the vehicle at the time  make sure you try to get yourself and any other occupants out of the car if at all possible, the last thing you want is to be in a hostage situation.

 

Once you are sure that you are safe, contact the local police force and report the theft, try and give as much details as possible, you will need your registration number and if possible the VIN number that can be found on your ownership documents. Give as accurate a description of your car as possible, and keep a personal record of the time and date and any other relevant information written down to help your memory – you may be asked to give evidence at a later date and writing it down at the time can be very useful for this. You may receive a crime reference number from the police once they have visited you, keep this as you may need it to notify your insurance company.

 

If you have a tracking device fitted to the car, call the tracking company and activate it, and have them notify the police directly. They will usually do this rather than just passing the information to you.

 

Call your insurance company to notify them of the theft, giving them as much information as you can. Check your policy to see if it includes a courtesy car for the time your car has been stolen, and how long you have use of the car. Insurance companies usually have a statutory time that your car has been missing before they will arrange a payout, usually either 30 or 60 days, if your car is not recovered in this time they will then compensate you. If it is recovered after they have paid you for your loss then the car will belong to them and they will sett it to recoup some of the money paid out, but the car will be classified as a ’stolen – recovered’ car, sometimes reducing its market value slightly. If it is recovered before the time limit, any repairs to the car for damage caused by the theft can be claimed via the insurance company.

 

Finally, many thanks go to Orangewheels.co.uk who supply Ford Cars in the UK for their free help in compiling this website.