Your car is gone. Your heart jumps into your stomach. A million
things run through your head. Maybe you parked on the next block
over? Maybe you were only towed? What if it was stolen? In 1998, the Insurance Crime Prevention Bureau reported more
than 165,000 vehicles were stolen in Canada. That's one car every 3
minutes. When cars are stolen, personal items in the car are rarely
recovered. Even if the car is found, your stuff is usually gone.
Your auto insurance policy covers you for the damage or loss of
your vehicle - not the items inside. Wallets, CDs, laptops, sports
equipment, sunglasses are all considered "property"
in the insurance world. So what happens to your belongings inside the car if it's
stolen?If you don't have property insurance, then
you are responsible for replacing any items in the car on your
own. If you do have home insurance, you end up making two claims -
one on your auto policy for the loss of the car and one on your
property policy for all your personal items. Since this counts as
two claims, you might want to evaluate the cost of your belongings
to see if they are worth the risk of having an extra claim on your
record. If you have both your car and your home insured with us, we will
only make you pay one of the deductibles. If one of your policies
has a higher deductible than the other, you'll have to pay the
higher one. What if you don't own a home? Can you still get property
insurance?Definitely! In fact, everyone should have
property insurance. It doesn't matter if you don't live in a house.
Condo owners and people who are renting can still get property
insurance for their belongings inside their home. See the article "
The not so obvious reasons renters need tenants
insurance" for more information.
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