Theft of vehicle: steps to be taken with the insurance

Verified 26 November 2025 - Public Service / Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

You have been victim of a theft or a attempted theft of your vehicle ? If you have subscribed a theft warranty, you can be compensated. For this, you must respect several steps wear: complaint, make a declaration to your insurer in the deadlines provided for in the contract and follow the compensation procedure. We present you the applicable rules.

Step-by-step approach

If you are a victim of theft or attempted theft of your car, you must lodge a complaint quickly to the police or gendarmerie.

Who shall I contact

Insurance will require evidence the filing of a complaint to investigate your case.

The filing of a complaint allows the opening of a criminal investigation, which will be used to verify the circumstances of the disaster and, possibly, to identify those responsible.

If the vehicle documents or your identity documents were stolen at the same time, you must report it to the officers.

You will receive a receipt and, on request, a copy from minutes. These documents allow you to release your responsibility for offenses committed with the stolen vehicle (for example, an accident or a robbery).

You must report the loss to your insurer within the time limit set out in your contract.

This period shall be at least 2 working days, but it can be longer depending on the contracts.

FYI  

If you do not meet the deadline, your insurance company may refuse to compensate you if it proves that the delay was detrimental to it.

You can make that statement yourself or ask a third party to do it on your behalf.

The approach can be made of one 3 ways to:

  • On site, in an office of the insurer, or of a broker or general agent representing the insurer
  • Online, if it's planned on the website of the insurance company
  • By mail (it is best to send a registered letter or electronic registered mail).

In any case, you must indicate in the declaration the items which allow the insurer to you identify, know your sinister and the harm that he caused you.

These are:

  • Name, first name, address
  • Insurance contract number
  • Circumstances of the loss (place, date and time...)
  • Damage sustained (theft, attempted theft or damage)
  • Copy of the complaint receipt.

After a theft or an attempt, do not move the vehicle (if it is still there) and do not touch forced access.

Take some detailed photos and keep all the elements useful for the expertise (invoices, anti-theft systems, videos…).

If the break-in took place on your property (for example, gate or forced garage), also report it to your home insurance, because 2 contracts may be involved.

After the declaration of loss, the insurer may ask you for additional documents to investigate the file, for example:

  • Certificate of Registration (formerly known as
  • Certificate of administrative status (absence of pledge and opposition to the transfer of the
  • Lease or lease agreement (if you have leased or leased the vehicle)
  • Purchase invoice or sales certificate (if you purchased the vehicle)
  • Invoice for the installation of the stolen vehicle detection and recovery system or proof of subscription
  • Key sets.

He may also mission an expert to verify the circumstances or assess the damage.

The insurer checks whether you meet the conditions set out in the contract to be compensated for the theft or attempted theft.

If the insurer believes that you meet the planned conditions in the contract to be compensated, he will calculate the amount compensation.

The insurance contract generally provides that the indemnity in the event of theft corresponds to the value of the vehicle to say expert on the day of the disaster. This is an average value determined from the value of the vehicle on the used market.

The rules differ depending on whether the vehicle is found or not:

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The car is found

Most contracts specify that the insured must collect his vehicle until he has received the indemnity or before a period of 30 days.

After this period, the insured chooses to keep the indemnity or to recover his car.

If the car is found damaged, the insurer pays the amount of the repairs up to the value defined in the contract, after deduction of any frankness.

He also reimburses the costs incurred to recover the car provided that these are justified or that he himself has given his prior consent.

The amount of compensation for stolen accessories or items is indicated in the contract: use value for the accessories mentioned in the manufacturer's catalog, possible deductible…

The car's not found

After a period indicated in the contract, generally 30 days, the insured can claim the reimbursement of the vehicle from the insurer.

The latter then pays, against delivery of the keys and papers (registration certificate, situation certificate), an indemnity calculated according to the terms of the contract

If the insured vehicle is the subject of a lease, lease with option to purchase or long-term lease, certain insurance contracts provide for compensation for the difference between the indemnity that the renter of the vehicle is legally entitled to claim from the lessee (for early termination of the contract) and the indemnity (deductible not deducted) due under the guarantee of the contract.

If your vehicle is found damaged or has been robbed, do not initiate repairs without the written consent of your insurer.

In most cases, a prior expertise is mandatory.

If urgent repairs are needed (e.g. to secure the vehicle), you must immediately notify the insurer and keep the detailed invoices.

Work done without agreement or without supporting evidence may result in reduction or denial of compensation.

If the vehicle is found after you have been compensated, 2 possibilities exist according to the content of your contract:

  • Either you keep the allowance and you cede the vehicle to the insurer,
  • Must you return all or part of the compensation to take back the vehicle.

The insurer must inform you of the specific procedures to follow. It can also organize a new expert assessment to assess the condition of the vehicle found.

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