My car got stolen and wrecked… what to do?

Insurance Forum Auto Insurance
21

@Lyle
[deleted]

22

Ridge said:
@Lyle
[deleted]

Careful with coaching fraud, that could lead to a ban.

23

What do you mean when you say they had ‘access to the keys’? Were they living with you or had permission to use the car?

24

Vale said:
What do you mean when you say they had ‘access to the keys’? Were they living with you or had permission to use the car?

No, they just say ‘access’ because the keys were hanging up and easy to grab.

25

@Lyle
Well, without a police report stating it was stolen, the insurance company probably thinks it was just a case of someone in your family borrowing the car. That could explain why the adjuster is denying your claim.

26

@Vale
Insurance might be seeing it as ‘implied permissive use’ since the person had easy access to the keys. It varies between insurance companies though.

27

Finn said:
@Vale
Insurance might be seeing it as ‘implied permissive use’ since the person had easy access to the keys. It varies between insurance companies though.

Just because the keys are hanging there doesn’t mean anyone can just take the car!

28

@Nicol
Legally stolen maybe, but in terms of implied permissive use, it’s different. If someone has the keys and drives the car, the question becomes: how did they get the keys? Break in or careless access?

29

@Nicol
Actually, if you leave the keys in the ignition, you’re not always covered.

30

Ira said:
@Nicol
Actually, if you leave the keys in the ignition, you’re not always covered.

With comprehensive coverage, theft should be covered, even if the keys are left in the car.

31

@Nicol
They might still ask why you left your keys in the car, and then say it was implied that permission was given.

32

So after reading your comments, three things are clear:

  1. You didn’t file a police report. If you don’t file charges, it’s considered implied consent.

  2. Because you won’t file charges, it’s not a theft claim, and you don’t have collision coverage.

  3. Gap insurance won’t help either since it only kicks in with a total loss, and this isn’t a covered loss yet.

You’ll either need to press charges or deal with the cost on your own.

33

@Kai
I have a dumb question. If OP had full coverage and someone they know wrecked the car, would it still be covered?

34

Lior said:
@Kai
I have a dumb question. If OP had full coverage and someone they know wrecked the car, would it still be covered?

Yes, if they had collision coverage, a temporary guest would be covered. The problem here is that they don’t have the right coverage.