Ins agent says parked car is fully covered whether locked or unlocked

Well, duh!

That was my reaction at the time too, but I was unsure and so I was more polite about it. There are enough arbitrary and unintuitive practices I've heard of with my thankfully few encounters with insurance claims that I never assume anything I haven't asked about.

Thanks Elmer.

Yes, but relative to personal property in the car there are usually limits on a auto policy and you may have to resort to homeowners or renters insurance to cover your missing property.

May depend on the company, possibly the jurisdiction.

Possibly, also - the country?

Haven't checked with my company.

o j

If someone wants to break into your car, they won't care whether it is locked or now. And if you have a cloth top convertible, it is extremely easy to break in. A friend of mine from New York said he never locked his car there because he didn't want damage from broken windows, and he never left anything inside worth stealing.

Insurance companies use the deductible to help encourage customers to look out for themselves. If you have $500 skin in the game, you may very well lock your doors both house and car.

Thanks for checking. As I stated it depends on your insurance company. It may have been a requirement at that time with that company since I was told that by my agent not just someone in a casual conversation.

Except if your breaking the law. Puffing an unlocked car is illegal in Colorado.

In Colorado it is illegal to leave your car running, to warm it up....unlocked and unattended. Called puffing. If your breaking the law....deliberately.....your not covered. (supposidly, never had that claim)

All unlocked cars are covered, except if your puffing.

I would think that in Colorado as well as in my state and others that have legalized Cannabis use, puffing in a car might refer to something else.

Link to Colorado's puffing law. :0) Very funny...

The local DJ's actually call it puffing and remind people...."Yes! It's cold. But keep that car locked when warming it up."....they advise....

I’ve never heard idling/warming up the car referred to as “puffing.” Is that a Colorado thing?

Wait: so does that mean it’s illegal to sell remote start paraphernalia in CO?

"The new law exempts car owners with remote-start systems. Drivers must keep the keyless start fob far enough away from the car that the vehicle can't be moved."

From a news article.

I had wondered about the insurance aspect. Some years ago we were staying in a second floor condo on Kauai. We came out one morning to find the guests in the third floor condo giving their burglary report to the police. We had locked our sliders at night. They had not. A burglar had climbed past our balcony to theirs and taken all their money and jewelry. The police officer said they would have a hard time explaining to their insurance company how they'd failed to secure the possessions stolen. So...maybe it does hinge on whether posessions are stolen...but not the value of a stolen (possibly totaled) car?

Doesn't make sense to me.

"relative to personal property in the car there are usually limits....."

This is a bad practice at any time. Sometimes unavoidable when out and about but inexcusable when home. Any items that must be left in a car should be not visible from the outside, usually easily done by being placed in the trunk or covered hatchback.

Remote start? That's a new one for me.

In Michigan you can be ticketed for leaving your car running in your drive, even if you use your remote start and are simply warming it up. It is uncommon for that ticket to be given out in my area. It is possible in some model cars, for a thief to simply drive off in it. In my particular vehicle, the doors and lift-gate lock automatically when it is started remotely and if you do not put the key in after a certain amount of time, it shuts off completely.

One of my vehicles recognizes the key fob in my pocket or purse and it starts itself. Certainly that is no hazard when I am away from the car.

Not all losses of personal property in a car are due to theft. Both fires and accidents can result in signficant damage, even if items are well concealed in a trunk. A carport arson fire at a former residence resulted in the loss of two vehicles and a motorcycle......all covered by auto insurance. But my DH's golf clubs, sales samples, my tennis racquet and various other personal bits and pieces had to be claimed under our homeowners' policy.

I know of people who don't lock their car either, because they'd rather not have their windows broken.

I tried locking my car and left it running to warm up, and my doors wouldn't lock. A prevention of accidentally leaving the key in the ignition, I guess.

A lot of people have the remote starters to warm up the car before they get in. (or cool it down in summer).

In many areas until remote starts started to be included with some cars it was against the law to leave an unattended car running. Last year or the year before the law was changed here so a remote start became legal. It was a city ordinance so each city can be different. Not having one I do not know if the door remains locked when the engine is started or not. Since they seem to be becoming standard equipment at least on the cars I have been recently reviewing people should expect to see one the next time they purchase a new car.

I never heard of remote starters before. They probably don't sell them here.

Many new cars come equiped with remote starts. And you can buy after market models at places like Best Buy or CarToys. A service option of Compustar as well. Also if you work nights and have to park in dark lots or dimly lit parking garages, it is a nice feature to have. Not just for the cold weather!

When I start mine from inside my house I have to press the lock button then the start button. I have to unlock it when I go out and if I don't put the key in the ignition and turn it two clicks I can't get it out of park. So even if someone broke a window and got in they couldn't put it in gear.

I can lock my car only when the drivers side is open. Previous car, I had to start from the passenger side, to warm it up... so I could walk away after locking it.

Often, where there is a will, there is a way.

I remember when that happened Elizabeth, it sure did upset a lot of folks. Just from what I have heard, it seems like law enforcement is over stepping. Still even so, I’ve never felt comfortable using my remote start outside of my garage,

In regards to the fobs, I’ve seen news reports about how theives are catching the fob signals and using them to break in and/or steal cars.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/experts-car-key-fob-hacks-latest-theft-tool/story?id=56487440

I have a car with remote start - I bought it new several years ago and it was a major reason why I bought this particular car. It's a Jeep.

Anyway, I have been using the remote start quite a bit lately (duh!) and recently discovered that when I hit the remote start button the car automatically locks every door - even if they were NOT locked prior. There's no law prohibiting remote start where I live.

Lars, remote starters are one of those things that you don’t miss until you’ve had one. When we moved to Michigan from SoCal, I laughed at the idea of remote starters as well as heated garages. It made no sense to me until our first winter. LOL. Presently our garage gets so cold, my bottled water is frozen solid and tomorrow we’re expecting zero degree temps with a -30 windchill, getting into a car that hasn’t been prewarmed can be painful! LOL.

Heated seats baby!

Factory remote starts and plenty of 3rd party systems are perfectly safe and legal. I've had remote starts since 1990. We seldom use them since all three cars are garage queens. My system also locks all doors, turns on lights, and sounds an alarm at attempt to enter without the key minder.

Remote start comes in handy when leaving downtown theater and walking to parking garage. When we arrive car is WARM.

Elmer - I totally agree. I don’t know why people keep valuables in their cars. Mine is locked in the garage!

As an insurance agent way way back, I took many of these claims. As a member of Nextdoor.com, I read that it still happens all the time.

Oh yeah, Brushworks! My remote start has made a difference in where I park my car at work, restaurant, hotel, etc. We stayed at a casino several weeks ago in Kansas City and our room was on the 6th floor overlooking the parking lot. I had parked quite a ways from the door, but with a clear unobstructed line from our room window down to my car, it was no problem to start remotely. By the time we gathered our luggage, went down the elevator, through the lobby, out the door, and across the parking lot, my car was toasty and the windows were cleared of frost. Heaven.

I use an app on my phone for my Volvo, I can start it or lock/unlock the doors from basically anywhere in the world where I have cell service. I can also see the location of the vehicle on a map, the temperature at the vehicle, check the maintenance and vehicle statistics (mileage, etc.), and contact Roadside Assistance from within the app. I think I can disable the car also, in case it were stolen I suppose.

We recently started it from the runway after landing from vacation and the car had been sitting in long-term parking. Doors have to be locked in order for it to start. Shuts off after a maximum of 15 minutes.

I don't know about locked/unlocked for my insurance company, but I do know they want to see a police report filed.

In many places, "police reports" for non-emergency events are completed entirely by the individual affected and done online. They can be quite perfunctory and may take 5 minutes or less to complete. Most frequently no police or law enforcement officer will be involved.

Ooooo.. one of my birthday presents this year was a remote start. SO had one put on one of my cars. I love it. When I leave work at 5 am my car is toasty and the windows are defrosted so I dont have to sit shivering while i wait for it to warm up.

I suspect I will love it even more in the suffocating southern summer. My car will be cool when I get in it to drive to work in the afternoons. No more seatbelt or steering wheel burns!!!

Amy, that sounds good. Is it connected to your fob?

I don't have a fob. I bought that car brand new when I was 18. It doesn't even have power locks or windows. But thanks to SO, it now has a bluetooth, a new stereo, and now a remote start. It came with 2 remotes that you put on your keyring.