If the worst has happened, and your beloved car or bike has been stolen, we understand that you’ll be in shock. But what should you do next?

You need to make a motor vehicle insurance claim. This sounds like it’s a long and difficult process, but luckily that’s not the case.

In just a few simple steps you can inform your insurer and the police of the theft and start the process of the claim. While it’s hard to replace your lost vehicle, motor insurance can give you the funds to cope with the loss.

Just remember, your vehicle must be covered under a comprehensive insurance policy, which includes loss/damage to the vehicle as a result of theft.

Vehicle theft is unfortunately quite common in India, especially in its big cities. More than 22,000 cars were reported missing in 2014 alone, and sadly only 2,322 were ultimately recovered.

For your vehicle to be covered in such circumstances, you must have a comprehensive policy which covers it in the case of damages and losses caused to your own vehicle (third-party only policies just cover damages you may cause to other vehicles).

This coverage is especially important when you are making a claim after a theft.

So you’ve parked your vehicle somewhere to go shopping, or to a pub or restaurant, and now you can’t find it. First, check with any nearby towing companies, or the nearest traffic police station to see if your vehicle was towed away. If you still can’t find it then start the process of reporting the theft to the police.

Learn more about:

• Car Insurance Policy
• Two Wheeler Insurance Policy

When you realize that your vehicle has been stolen, start the claims process immediately, as the more you delay the process the more complicated it may get. Here are the immediate steps to follow:

Step 1: File an FIR

If you discover that your vehicle has been stolen, your very first step should be to head to the nearest police station and lodge a complaint.

You can do this by filing a First Information Report (FIR) which will act as the foundation for your insurance claim. Make sure you get a copy of this report.

Step 2: Inform your insurer

The second step is for you to inform your insurance company of the theft. Make sure you do this at the earliest possible moment, as they too have their own procedure to kick start regarding your claim.

Step 3: Inform the RTO

The next thing you must do is to notify the Road Transportation Office (RTO) that your vehicle has been stolen.

This is a very important step as the RTO is responsible for transferring ownership of your vehicle, so doing this quickly can prevent any unauthorized change in ownership.

Remember to get the RTO transfer papers and any necessary forms (see the documents list below).

Step 4: Make sure you have all the relevant documents

Once you have informed all the relevant authorities, start collecting all the documents you would need to make your claim.

Different kinds of claims have their own sets of documents, but in the case of vehicle theft you would need the following:

• Copy of the original FIR
• Copy of the vehicle’s policy documents
• The claim form from the insurance company, duly signed
• A copy of your driving license,
• The original keys to the vehicle
• Copy of the vehicle’s registration certificate
• RTO transfer papers, duly signed, with the necessary forms (form 28, 29, 30 and 35)

As soon as you have collected all these documents, submit them to your insurance company. 

Step 5: Get a “no-trace” report from the police

A month after you have filed an incident report from the police, ask them to generate a “no-trace report” which is also known as the “untraced vehicle report”.

This document essentially states that the police cannot locate your vehicle. Send this across to your insurer as well. 

After you've sent all the relevant documents to your insurer, they will first employ special investigators to locate your vehicle. If they are unable to find it even after 60-90 days, they will begin the process of generating the Insured Declared Value or IDV of your vehicle for your claim. 

Once you go through the claims settlement process and your claim is approved, you must transfer the RC of the stolen vehicle, all its keys, and the original invoice to the insurance company, along with a letter of subrogation. Then the approved amount will be reimbursed to you within seven working days.

If your vehicle was taken on a loan, the insurance company will reimburse the claim amount to the financer. In this case, any remaining payments will still be borne by you, the insured.

And that’s it!

All you need to do is be patient and wait for either your old vehicle to turn up or for the claim to be sanctioned.

Don’t lose patience, the entire procedure may take months to complete, but that’s just how it is. If you’ve followed the steps above, you've started the claim process in the right way and followed all the rules, so you have nothing to fear.