Tip Center - Report Stolen Car

If your car has been stolen, it is very important to report the stolen car to the police immediately, this way if it is involved accident you will not be held responsible. Also, the sooner you report the car stolen the higher the chance is of recovering the car.

Here are the general steps to follow to file a police report for a stolen car:

• Call the non-emergency phone number in the district that the car was stolen to acquire the address for the police station.
• Go in to the police station and they will provide the police report paperwork to report the car stolen.
• When filling in the police report, be sure to include the vehicle identification number (VIN) and the license plate number of the stolen car. The VIN is always on the title and many times the license plate number is on insurance cards.
• Once the police report is processed the police will provide a police report case number. Be sure to keep this number safe as this case number will be needed to follow up on the stolen car.

Once you report the stolen car to the police and have a case number, you should contact your insurance provider to inform them of the car theft. Just about every insurance company requires a police report number for the stolen car to provide compensation.

Car warranties do not cover car theft so you may consider covering the car for theft, especially if you are still making payments for the car or if you drive one of the top ten stolen cars.

When filing a stolen vehicle claim to your insurance provider, you should have the following information available:

• The title certificate for the stolen vehicle.
• The location of all the keys to the stolen vehicle before and after the vehicle theft.
• All the names and contact information of everyone who had access to the stolen vehicle.
• A detailed description of the stolen vehicle, this should include mileage, vehicle options, all service records, and receipts for any upgrades.
• A detailed list of any personal property that was in the stolen vehicle. Coverage for personal property that was stolen in a car theft incident varies from insurance carrier, the insurance coverage and from state to state. Also, if you have homeowners or renters insurance, you should inquire whether these policies provide additional coverage for personal property that was stolen.
• If you were still making payments, include all finance or leasing contact information and the account number. If applicable, inform your finance or leasing company of the vehicle theft to discuss the case directly with your insurance provider.

If the police recover your vehicle, be sure to notify your insurance provider immediately. This will avoid any discrepancies and help to resolve the stolen vehicle claim more quickly.

It's bad enough to experience car theft, learning that your insurance policy doesn't cover the loss and expenses just worsens the situation.

Manufacturer installed theft deterrent systems may not be enough. As they are the same for each manufacturer or model they can be easily disabled by experienced professional car thieves. It may be worth investing in a more sophisticated anti-theft alarm system and having it professionally installed.

Older cars are just as likely to be stolen as new ones. Older car models are stolen to be stripped for parts which are no longer manufactured. If you review the top ten stolen cars, you will see that according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), most cars stolen in 2008 were older models.

Report the stolen car to the police immediately, especially if you are still at the scene of the crime. Time is of the essence, most cars are not stolen for a "joy ride," they are more likely stolen to be stripped of parts so every delay means the stolen car is more likely to be driven to a chop shop or out of town. Keep the license plate number and VIN in your wallet or purse and keep a copy of the registration and insurance card at home so they can be quickly provided to the police and your insurance company.

Closely review your insurance policy to ensure you are covered for car theft and for a rental car. If you are not covered for a rental car you may want to consider this option as it may only cost a few dollars per month which is a very small cost in comparison to even a few days of car rental.

Do not keep personal information in your car such as anything with your address, birth date, drivers license number or especially social security number. Unfortunately, more and more cases of stolen cars and car break-ins are leading to other crimes linked to the car theft. It's better to keep your registration and insurance information on your person, this is more inconvenient but it's worth the peace of mind if your car is stolen.

Here is the step by step process to report stolen car online here on Stolen-Property.com.

1. Register - if you haven't done so already, click the "register" button at the top right side of the website.
2. Enter your information on the easy registration form and click "Register" to send the form.
3. Email verification - once the registration form is sent, an email will be sent to verify the address. Open your email, find the email sent from Stolen-Property.com (check the spam or bulk if you don't see it in the inbox) and either click the link or copy and paste into the browser navigation bar.
4. Now the account has been activated through email verification, you will be ready to log in.
5. Once logged in, click the "New Listing" button in the main navigation, then click "Automobile," then click "Car" to report stolen car.
6. Enter as much information as possible, especially the VIN for the stolen car then click "Submit."

Once these steps have been taken to report stolen car, there will be a permanent record of the stolen car online which is searchable by anyone in the world long into the future.

Each year more than 22,000 cars are reported stolen in the United States. That's one stolen car every 25 minutes. It cost the insurance industry $120,000,000 per year in the United States and these cars are stripped down and shipped in containers to locations around the world. Many of these stolen cars are rebuilt and resold in the Middle East, Africa or Eastern Europe and police say these car theft rings are incredibly difficult to stop since the business is extremely profitable. Since the car is stolen the sale is pure profit for thieves.

Police around the world are attempting to find ways to curtail the amount of stolen cars each year and bring the thieves to justice. The revenue associated with stolen cars varies so the approach to curtailing this illegal activity must as well: Some vehicles are being replated, registered again and simply sold. Some cars are sold for parts and the chassis discarded. Preventing the resale of stolen cars or stolen car parts is difficult because ports around the world receive thousands of cargo containers each day and there is only enough man power to inspect a small percentage of those containers. If a car or car parts are found they must then be able to be identified as stolen.

Stolen-property.com instantly puts out a worldwide notice of a stolen car, enabling police, dock workers and potential buyers that your car has been reported stolen.

The Highway Loss Data Institute's report for the top 10 stolen cars of 2010 in the United States (listed from most stolen car to least stolen top 10 car):

• Cadillac Escalade
• Chevrolet Silverado
• Dodge Chargerr
• Chevrolet Avalanche
• Infiniti G47 coupe
• GMC Sierra Crew Cab
• Nissan Maxima
• Hummer H2
• GMC Yukon XL
• Chevrolet Tahoe

Systems like LoJack, Onstar and various other GPS stolen car locating systems can prevent a car from successfully being stolen.

LoJack reports a 90-percent recovery rate and OnStar reports a 76-percent recovery rate. Most stolen cars are returned to their rightful owner within 24 hours and many of the car thieves are brought to justice.

Most car theft GPS prevention devices like Lojack work with police to quickly recover the stolen car. Police in 28 participating states were given Lojack receivers, which can receive a transmitted signal from a stolen car from 3-5 miles in distance, let them know the relaitve proximity and direction. A description of the stolen car by Lojack helps police in the area identify the stolen vehicle. From the air, a signal from a stolen car with a Lojack device can reportedly be picked up from 40 miles away.

The Lojack is powered by the car's battery, but if the battery is disconnected the Lojack can operate from it's own internal battery. The unit can be installed in roughly 20 places in a car, making it difficult for car thieves to locate and disable.