Expert: Richard Hixenbaugh - 9/1/2010

Question
If my car was stolen from my address, and can not be found, would I be able to be reinbursed for the blue book value of the car. If so how long would I have to wait. and what would be the process?

Answer
Hi Dawn,

First you would need to report the theft to the police. Then you would report it to your insurance company. Your insurance comapny will do an investigation that generally takes about 60 days. As part of the insurance company's investigation, they will be investigating you. You will have to fill out lots of paperwork as well as give them permission to look into all of your bank records and credit report. They do this to see if you are in financial trouble and may have been involved in the theft of your car just to collect the insurance money. If everything is clear and your vehicle is not found by the police within 60 days then your insurance company will pay the value of your car. Usually they will do a market search to see what other cars like yours are selling for. They do not use blue book because those values are usually inflated.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh