Report the claim to your insurer
In the event of burglary and except in cases of force majeure, you must report the loss to your insurer within the time limit provided for in the general conditions of the contract. The deadline is generally set at 48 hours (2 working days). The law of 12/31/1989 provides that it cannot be less than this duration.
Even if you have not yet made an inventory of the stolen items, file your claim, because you need to take a date.
Good to know: The reporting period stipulated by your insurance contract only begins to run from the moment you become aware of the loss.
You must report your claim by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt (LRAR) addressed to your insurer or its representative. You can also report the claim by email, SMS or any other electronic means, but confirmation by a LRAR within the legal period of 48 hours makes compliance with the latter indisputable.
File a complaint
In parallel with your claim report, the first step is to notify the police or gendarmerie (depending on your place of residence) in order to make a theft report. Generally, the conditions of your contract also require that you file a complaint for burglary with a police station or gendarmerie brigade. A certificate of filing a complaint will be given to you by the police which you must send to your insurer. This filing of a complaint is very often required to obtain compensation. Please note, it is also possible to file a complaint by sending a paper letter to the public prosecutor according to the website of the Ministry of the Interior.
The loss report and the theft report/complaint must be made as soon as possible. Do not wait to carry out these formalities until you have precisely defined the list of stolen items in your home. You will then have time to complete it after having carried out a careful inventory of what has disappeared.
In the event of late declaration of the loss, your insurer may object to this delay in order to refuse to compensate you. Don’t let yourself be intimidated by this position. Please note that under the law of December 31, 1989, the insurer cannot claim forfeiture of coverage if you demonstrate that your delay is due to a case of force majeure or results from a fortuitous event. Even if your declaration was made late, the insurer cannot claim its non-guarantee against you. Indeed, article L.113-11 of the insurance code only authorizes him to reduce the compensation if he is able to demonstrate that your late declaration caused him harm.
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Prepare your compensation file
Once the claim report has been registered and the supporting documents for your loss are in hand, your insurer commissions an expert to assess your loss.
Expert’s missions
The expert’s mission is multiple. Before assessing your damage, he must:
- note the materiality of the facts and the modus operandi of the burglar(s) to break into the insured premises, in order to ensure that it is covered by the contract (break-in, escalation, use of false keys, remaining unknown, etc.);
- ensure the existence of any protections required by the contract (bars, security bars on shutters, armored door, etc.);
- establish the existence and value of the missing property (depending on the contracts and the type of property, it is estimated as new or obsolete replacement value deducted);
- determine the rate of obsolescence possibly applicable to each of the stolen objects;
- ensure that the insured capital was sufficient in relation to the furniture held;
Please note: to obtain coverage, the insured must provide proof of the reality of the damage he has suffered. You must provide proof of the materiality of the theft and demonstrate the existence and value of the objects declared stolen (proof of purchase).
Save damaged items
If the damage caused by burglars to doors, locks, windows or shutters has forced you to replace them to ensure the closure of your home as quickly as possible, keep the replaced parts carefully to make them available to the expert. These are real pieces of evidence that allow him to fulfill his mission.
Prepare the statement of losses incurred
To do this, after having identified the stolen goods for burglars and having established a list, you must put proof of existence and proof of value in front of each object (at least for precious or valuable objects: jewelry, carpets, antique furniture, furs, valuable watches, musical instruments, hi-fi devices, videos, etc.).
Proof of the existence and value of the goods can be provided by any means and in particular by:
- proof of purchase (proof of existence and value),
- new replacement invoice (value),
- guarantee certificate (existence),
- photographs (existence),
- videos (existence),
- preliminary estimate (existence and value),
- attestation/testimony (existence),
- etc.
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