Someone stole my car. Thieves who steal cars often do so because they live on the streets and have no other way to get around town. A GPS Device for tracking can lead you, and law enforcement, directly to your stolen automobile. By contrast, some steps will make your car much easier to steal. Car Insurance Claims. As is often the case, your vehicle may be recovered quickly. Also, use rust analysis and wear patterns to see if your car's damage is actually from an old accident. A police officer can visit the database while interacting with vehicles on the road. Many police who investigate stolen cars say that it is unlikely to be found if a vehicle is missing for a week. The penalties for this crime can range from a fine to imprisonment. However, in the Northeast, the percentage goes down to 19%. In the U.S., a car is stolen once every 44 seconds.XResearch source If you believe your car has been stolen, you must report the theft to the police. A car owner would have to file a stolen car report, then wait. The penalties for this crime can range from a fine to imprisonment. Now, when any officer processes the license plates, they can tell if a car is stolen or not, and make attempt to recover it. Before you panic too much, call 911 or study up on how to create a terrible hex for a car thief, you might want to save a little embarrassment and confirm your vehicle has actually been stolen. The great thing about GPS data loggers is that they provide police and law enforcement with second-by-second tracking, but do so with no subscription fees. An open window allows a burglar to get access to your vehicle. Every vehicle owners nightmare: You walk out, keys in hand, ready to drive to your next destination, only to find your car is not there. 1 in 5 stolen cars goes back to the owner. I am an Automotive specialist. You also have to understand that criminals arent as dumb as you may believe. If the person is a known criminal or gang member, then the police will be able to build a case against them or have more evidence for an existing case. Read Also: What Kind Of Drones Do Police Use. After doing that, you should make sure to send out a demand letter to the person who sold you the car. The Auto Unit is responsible for document fraud investigations. This amounts to around $600 million in losses for car owners and insurers. The video evidence is important to compare with an arrested suspect caught with your stolen vehicle. Some surveillance systems are not installed to capture details other than the general activities on site. Vehicles looking out of place or left on the street or business parking lots overnight are typically inspected for theft. However, another parking lot within walking distance may have security cameras installed to deter thieves from taking cars from this location. My car was stolen yesterday with my purse in it, I've done all of the first steps - filed a police report, called my insurance, the dealership, cancelled my cards, posted on social media, but I'm wondering what happens now. I have worked at General Motors Company for over five years as the Marketing Operations Production Coordinator. This will help create a paper trail and give the authorities a better chance of finding your vehicle. Again, an investigating police officer sees every car as stolen. They then proclaim the stolen vehicle to be permanently lost. The department receives hundreds of reports monthly, and your stolen car report is investigated in the order it is received. They use undercover officers with special devices to track signals. Cars with crooked license plates, temporary tags (especially out-of-state tags) and busted out windows covered with bags are signs that a car may be stolen. A GPS device sending and receiving signals from these satellites can be located virtually anywhere in the world to precise geographic coordinates, usually within fifteen feet! Matthew is a freelance writer who is passionate about technology, music, photography, and decentralized finance. Some criminals arent as smart as we give them credit for. The wealthy report their missing boats, cars, speedboats, motorcycles, race cars, etc., to their local police. Often, a potential thief will see that you have these features and will be deterred, preventing any damage at all. His favorites include the Koenigsegg CCX and Lamborghini Diablo 6.0 VT, but for him, the Ferrari 360 Spider is one of the sexiest cars that exists to date. The proceeds from the auction will go to the police department or agency that recovered the car. This is rare, however, as most stolen cars are eventually returned to their owners. This will definitely save a lot of time and increase the rate of recovery for stolen vehicles, said Azusa Police Chief Lloyd Wood. 2. Video recordings from security cameras are one of the best ways to find your stolen car and vehicle. You can track down your stolen car online via checking the parking violation. Having your car stolen can be a traumatic and stressful event, but luckily there are ways to prevent it, to mitigate it, and recover from it. This can be a complex process, and there are many steps that need to be followed in order to find the car and bring the perpetrators to justice. License Plate Reader locations are street pools, streetlights, freeways exits, and entrances. If the owner cannot be reached or does not want to cooperate with the police, the next step may be to seek out help from local businesses or individuals who may have seen the car. Run plates of vehicles that have one plate number on the front and a different one on the back. They might find their vehicle dismembered and in an empty lot at best. The police will also reach out to the owner of the car to get more information about the theft. Therefore, these loud alarms deter vehicle thefts. However, at roll call in just about every department in America does a run down of their list of vehicles known to be stolen, and officers out on patrol are on the lookout for those cars. Did I leave a window cracked? It just doesnt happen. How Long Does It Take for A Stolen Car to Be in The System? Police will investigate a stolen car by looking for any witnesses who may have seen the car being stolen. After the examination the investigator will then need to thoroughly document the vehicle as it is seen. You can get a car insurance quote instantly from most agencies in your local area and they can also provide more information that will help you regarding car stolen situations. This means you may have to do some of the legwork yourself if you expect to find your car. The process of investigating a car theft can take some time, so it is important to file a police report as soon as possible after your car has been stolen. Using these cameras has improved how police investigate stolen cars. Also Check: How To File A Police Complaint Online. During the report entry, your VIN (vehicle identification number) and license plate are entered into a stolen vehicle database nationwide. If someones going to steal your car, odds are, theyre going to turn off, remove or disable any GPS technology. It Is not often that a stolen vehicle is returned to its owner. Recommended Reading: Can You Find A Police Report Online, You May Like: How To Train For Police Academy. If someone is caught driving a stolen car, they can be charged with possession of a stolen vehicle. Depending on the movements of the vehicles and where it is stored, the police will likely know if it was stolen by a single person or by a local gang. It happens all the time, police say. The first step in investigating a stolen car is to file a report with law enforcement. Now, I own my garage in Miami, Florida. What Is the Process When Your Car is Stolen? Also, remember to request an incident form from the rental company and review the contract terms about the liability insurance you have chosen. Once it is determined that the vehicle is reported to be stolen, an officer will attempt to stop it using just lights and siren. The courses are adapted to the criminal trends threatening that region. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. All stolen vehicle information shall be recorded on a Vehicle Theft Report (75-71). Comprehensive insurance generally covers losses after auto theft. Read also: State laws allow you to claim abandoned cars. If the criminal stole the car for a joyride, it will not take long to recover it. All in all, the chance of finding a stolen car is quite high. Check the area where the violation takes place. With comprehensive experience in writing exceptional quality articles and blogs about cars and related stuff, Daniel is one of the finest bloggers and a hardcore car lover we have. The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) releases an annual report on the recovery of stolen cars. So, the ratio of recovered vehicles is roughly 20% of the total stolen vehicle list. Do this every time you leave the car, even if just for a minute or two. He currently owns a Nissan 300ZX TT and a Pearl Yellow but plans to upgrade it to 550 HP. They will try to determine who stole the car . Because the driver of a stolen vehicle is not the registered owner, officers cannot simply go to the ROs residence and await their return. Many people report stolen cars when the car is still in their possession, but they cant find it. They just run the tags on random vehicles abandoned or illegally parked until they discover one reported stolen on the database. You Can Find Best Car Services Here We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. This is down from the previous years recovery rate of 71 percent. In what may be just a few minutes inside the shopping center, the car is stolen. The primary department will conduct how police investigate a stolen car. There are a handful of ways in which you can still track your stolen car, even if there is no GPS. The faster your stolen vehicle is put into the police database the more quickly law enforcement can be looking for the vehicle. Here is the basic procedure for how the police investigate a stolen car. How do police investigate stolen car? According to investigators, some of the defendants appeared at car-rental counters at John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport in which they presented both fake IDs and credit cards in order to rent vehicles. Also, many cars are stripped of their parts. Below are the ways they find your stolen vehicle: An officer will drive to areas around in the city where stolen cars are routinely dumped. Even if they do, they may not have the time to dedicate to tracking down your car. Its worth noting that these are national averages; your local area may have different rates. This includes taking photographs of the car, recording the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), and checking for any outstanding warrants or tickets that may be associated with the car. Stolen vehicles reported to the police department are logged into a database accessible nationwide. Officer 3. This can be a complex process, and there are many steps that need to be followed in order to find the car and bring the perpetrators to justice. How scary would it be to deal with auto theft,especially if that was your only method of transportation? Andrew P. Collins. This way, you will not have to face the total loss alone. Lock all doors, windows, and the trunk. How the police investigate a stolen car may not matter. The police department will contact you using the number or contact address you provided when you reported your stolen car. LoJack has a stolen vehicle recovery system that reimburses you up to $10,000 if the vehicle isnt recovered within 30 days. You will be notified on the impound location where the associated fees will be paid. If any police officer identifies your vehicle, or checks the license plate listed in the databases, they will be notified your vehicle is stolen and will attempt to recover it. Let our team of GPS tracking experts guide you to the best GPS tracker for car, truck or personal safety application! One of the essential features of using this database is an international database. They can do this by looking for registration records or contacting the manufacturer of the car in order to find out who purchased it. How did someone steal it? We will also discuss some tips for what you should do if your car is stolen, and some other things to keep in mind if you are ever in this situation. The different stolen cars could break down into hot and cold categories. To watch it work is absolutely incredible, said Councilman Harry Stemrich. Documents the required information on CAD call. One or more of the following may establish proof of ownership: 1.3.1.1. This includes taking photographs of the car, recording the Vehicle Identification Number , and checking for any outstanding warrants or tickets that may be associated with the car. This amounts to around $600 million in losses for car owners and insurers. Also Check: How To File A Police Report Online Chicago. However, if there no timely video equipment, the investigation can be challenging. In some instances, private investigators may be hired to try and locate the missing vehicle. However, the investigator may have a few other stolen cars to track, so it may not be about yours alone. They hold the aircraft together, act as a safety backup, and make People may wonder why so many people would like to change their car mileage? POLICY A. In fact, the police may not investigate the theft of a car at all, depending on the circumstances. The police will also attempt to track down the owner of the car. For example, if you leave your car to heat up in the morning by running the engine with the keys in the ignition, then you are making your car extremely easy to steal . Car insurance companies typically have a waiting period of 30 days, before they will pay a stolen car claim, as it gives time to see if the car would be recovered. As part of that investigation, ownership must be established. If you lose your keys,a thief can find your address and then steal your car without having to do any damage. This happens prior to the written report. If your stolen car is recovered, the recovering officers from the department of motor vehicles will inform you right away. It is important to weigh the need to pursue a stolen vehicle against the safety of the officer and the motoring public. Having your car stolen can be a traumatic and stressful event, but luckily there are ways to prevent it, to mitigate it, and recover from it. The vehicle owner can go around their city and find their vehicle independently. The following tips will make it harder and less attractive for a thief to steal your car: Ultimately, in an ideal world, we wouldnt have to worry about car theft however, knowing what to do and being prepared for every eventuality is the key to getting life back to normal if your car is stolen. They can obtain access to your car and everything inside by unlocking the door. The police will then enter the stolen car into a database of stolen vehicles. By contrast, some steps will make your car much easier to steal. They may post pictures, videos or comments about stealing your car. A car can be stripped entirely of parts within a few days. Overall, the national average is approximately 20% for stolen vehicle recovery. In order to accept a report on a stolen car, members shall conduct a preliminary investigation. If it was, its time to notify the Police to see if they can help. A criminal organization likely performs the exportation. When you report a stolen car to your local police department, a report entry begins. Manage Settings Read also: Steps to recover your stolen license plate. Comments ( 208) A 22-year-old stole a car, got stopped, stole a police car from the officers trying to get him, then led half the cops in Bergen . The best way to think of a passive tracking solution is that it is a recorder of vehicle travel history. But the 21st century offers a more appealing alternative, provided you have installed a GPS tracker in your car. Well, now imagine if your car is stolen. Once it is determined that the vehicle is reported to be stolen, an officer will attempt to stop it using just lights and siren. If you find any foreign objects that seem suspicious then you should try to track down what it is. However, since passive tracking systems do not use cellular communication in transmitting data they must be removed from the vehicle and downloaded in order for a police agency to capture and view the recorded data.