FAQ: Does New Jersey Car Insurance Cover Theft?

Is theft covered under a standard New Jersey car insurance policy?

I’m a new car owner, and I’m curious about what all is covered under my insurance. I often travel with expensive items such as my laptop and other electronics, and sometimes I leave them in my car. I’m worried about theft and having to pay to replace these items out of my own pocket. So what I need to know first, is theft covered under standard New Jersey car insurance policies?

Unfortunately the answer is no, at least in regard to what you’re specifically asking about. Standard car insurance policies don’t cover personal property that gets stolen out of your car. So if your laptop gets swiped from your front seat, unfortunately that’s not covered. However, your auto insurance may provide some reimbursement in the event of a break-in.

If you carry comprehensive car insurance, you’re covered for incidents “other than collision,” meaning that if your car gets damaged during a break-in, your policy is likely to pay for the cost of repairs to the vehicle. Should your car’s windows or windshield get smashed or your door lock get broken upon the intrusion, comprehensive car insurance will reimburse you for repairs to the vehicle, but not for the property that was stolen, like your laptop.

That being said, since comprehensive car insurance covers the vehicle itself, it will provide reimbursement for certain forms of theft. If a thief steals your car stereo, for example, your comprehensive coverage will reimburse you for that. As long as what’s stolen was a permanently installed fixture of the vehicle itself, it’s likely to be covered under a comprehensive policy.

When and how does New Jersey car insurance cover theft?

Well, sadly a standard car insurance policy will never cover theft of your personal property from your vehicle. That’s a good reason never to store valuable items within plain sight in your car and to avoid leaving them in your car entirely if at all possible. But once again, only comprehensive car insurance policies will reimburse for theft of permanent fixtures like stereos as well as damage to the vehicle in the event of an intrusion.

If standard New Jersey car insurance policies won’t cover theft, what will?

When it comes to the theft of your personal property, your homeowners or renters insurance will likely provide coverage. Standard New Jersey homeowners insurance policies include coverage for repairs or replacement of personal property, even if it’s not stored within the home. Coverage would extend to stolen property that’s missing entirely or damaged property that got beaten up during an intrusion.

There are a couple things to keep in mind. First, your homeowners insurance has a lower coverage limit for personal property stored outside of the home, and it’s often 10% of that category’s total limit. Second, you’ll have to reach your homeowners policy’s deductible before it’ll reimburse you for damaged/stolen property. If your deductible is a couple thousand dollars, you might not get any help from your insurance company to replace your stolen items.

Considering all of this, the best practice is to reconsider where and how you store your valuable personal items. Your car is never the safest place for storage regardless of how much insurance you have. Theft and break-ins are a hassle to deal with, and a good way to prevent them is to not keep anything extra in your car if you don’t have to. Preventing a break-in in the first place would also save you the hassle of filing insurance claims or having to replace any stolen items yourself.