Of course you have to feel lucky that you are all are alright but MAD is good and how could you not be. It takes awhile and you being to feel the different stages of any loss and this was a big one that makes your life run smoothly.

Oh My, $500 worth of stuff.:heart to

So sorry this happened, really sux.:(

I had my car broken into (long time ago...I think I didn't lock it), I felt so violated. I left my wallet & checkbook in there (so dumb) & that was a huge hassle to deal with. TG they didn't get a chance to use anything...made a police report too.

I asked them, 'aren't you gonna take fingerprints or anything?' :p They just took a report & told me to change my bank acct # & report all my credit cards stolen.

Ann, your emotions are completely understandable. I'm feeling them for you. I'm so sorry about the added losses with your car. Hoping you will receive good news soon.

We had a similar thing happen in regards to the tow yard. The police man said he would take bf down to where they found our truck. "They" happened to be a business owner where our truck was dumped. The cops didn't even find it. The thief put in regular gas when it needed diesel. Bf purposely kept very little gas in it in case ppl tried to siphon gas. This was a few years ago when gas was very high.

For some reason the cop changed his mind and said he would call us when they were ready for us to pick up the truck. Well the never did, and had it towed instead. We had to pay the ransom to get it back. Then we found out it didn't start bc of the diesel/gas issue. We had to pay another company to tow it back to work bc we weren't about to give that crooked tow company another dime.

Ann, sending some good thoughts your way. It would be nice if your car would somehow be returned unharmed, but might not be likely.

It is a good reminder for me to be more attentive about what exactly is in my wallet. It is always a good idea to photo copy all cards and ID that are in the wallet, front and back, for a backup. It has been a couple years since I did this, so I don't have a current copy. It would be helpful in case of loss.

Be sure you mention that to your insurance company....years ago, when I got off work at midnight on Friday, I had loaded up my car to go to the deer lease the next day....had fishing equipment, tackle boxes, hunting rifles, etc....someone broke into my garage, stole the car and everything I had in it....extensive casset collection of years of music I had collected.....the insurance company paid for all that stuff....I even had 6 pages of the tapes listed in a notebook, so I was reimbursed for all of my collection! I had Aetna Insurance then....auto and homeowners....GREAT company....was heartbroken when they left Texas .....check with your insurance company and see if they still cover that Ann.....it was covered on my homeowners, I think....that was back in the 80's....cant remember exactly which one of my policies covered it....

I did talk to the ins company again yesterday - this would all be under Homeowners bc they were personal articles and since our deductible is $1900, it's not covered. Darn it.

I'm really glad to hear yours was paid for though, that is awesome!

Yesterday, someone was apparently trying to get into my credit card account online, guess they tried to log in 10 times, so my account got locked. They also tried to charge $411 somewhere near my house. It *really* creeps me out that they may live near here...it's making me paranoid being at the house alone and/or leaving my dogs alone in the house...what if they break in :(? We have ADT, but still.

That would really creep me out too until they catch this no good.:mad:

I have had my car broken into on a military installation very close to an occupied guard shack. I lost my music and vacation photos and a leather jacket that belonged to a friend. Thieves are so bold. Someone was in my car in the driveway right next to the house once, and stole loose change and left the door open on a frigid winter night. Also a friend's car was broken into while we were on vacation and all of our stuff was taken. You sure do feel violated when someone takes your belongings. I didn't even want to drive my car home from work when it was broken into knowing that a thief had been in it. I have lived in a house without a garage for 30 years. I sure wish I had one.

I went back and read your first post again. Something struck me as odd. The ONE DAY you leave the garage door open, the cable guy happened to be in your house and possibly walked right by your car? And maybe saw your wallet and a check in your car? Just seems coincidental to me. Like I said, I have not had a garage for 30 years and only had change stolen. My car was not locked because of freezing winter temps so it was an open invitation I guess. But I still had the creeps. Someone was in my car. I have a new motto after that.....never leave anything in the car that you would not be willing to say goodbye to. That said, I never ever leave the pups in the car. Not even to run in somewhere for a second. I cringe when ever I see someone has left a pup alone in their car. That is just taking too big of a chance that I will loose them forever.

Ann, I hope they catch these guys soon. I would be soooo pissed that they were trying to use my credit cards. Leads me back to thinking about the cable guy. Perhaps he saw the wallet and that was his real goal?

Ann I just saw this an wanted to say how sorry I was that this happened to you and to add my support. I also had a car stolen. They stole parts off of it but I did get it back. I agree I do think there should be a discount for towing and storage. I looked at my paperwork and they had found the car and kept it in storage for two weeks racking up storage costs before they sent me the letter letting me know where it was. It was my grandfather's 60 Chevy Impala so I was thrilled to get it back. I would suggest you contact the credit reporting agencies and put a freeze on your accounts so that no new accounts can be opened without your consent. I am sorry you also lost extra items on top of feeling violated it really can feel overwhelming.

You poor thing - that is truly creepy. Stay paranoid for a while. Check you home and vehicles nightly to be sure everything is locked up and secure, make that a habit. If you don't have it, buy lots of outside lighting, be sure your gates all lock, you have bolted storm doors on all entryways, double-locked windows, no huge shrubbery around your windows and areas of entry. Be sure your alarm is on all the time.

Just be vigilant for the next two months or so and usually the transitory-type thieves will move out of the area they are preying on after that, from the things I read after my sister was burglarized. I read car thieves usually wind up being a criminal on the run, needing a car urgently, semi-pro and professional car thieves, drug-dealers and joy riders, not usually neighbors. Yours could be a couple of semi-pros who are transients, move around every so often, robbing nearby neighborhoods. I read that they usually rent a cheap house/motel room near the area they work, watch the area for a while, learning the habits of the people, exploit the cars and homes they easily can, even returning to the same homes at times and then move on before the police can see their pattern and find them.

It's such a shame when people put so much effort into sneaking around and stealing from others who've worked long and hard for all they have instead of just getting down to making themselves successful at honest work they can take pride in. I hope you can feel safe in your home again in another couple of months or so.

Great advice, thank you :). I definitely have been/felt more vigilant than usual. We already have ADT, but I'm having them come over today to give me some quotes on outdoor cameras, and we're also going to have sensors installed on our 2 garages so that we can never leave it open when we try to arm the alarm at night.

Doodlebug - I totally hear you on your suspicions of the cable guy...but it wasn't him. He wouldn't even have been able to see my wallet or keys the way the car was positioned, and the check was sitting under something. Plus, this was a salt of the earth father of 4, also father of rescue doggies...nicest guy you could ever meet....I can't see a criminal bone being in his entire body, just nothing shady about him at all. But I too would think the exact same thing you did, looking from the outside in.

Oh, btw! In case this happens to anyone else....even though our Homeowners won't cover the personal articles losses bc the deductible is higher than the losses -- our tax accountant says we can deduct the losses in next year's taxes - so that's something, at least.

It is good to know that the cable guy was a good trustworthy guy. Thank goodness for that. It is scary to think that theives are out there watching us so closely for a slip-up so they can pounce. And good that you can use your loss on your taxes. I hope they get the person.

I don't know, maybe it's my Chicago upbringing but I wouldn't rule anyone out at this point.