Home was robbed!

[DonDavis]

I guess it's my turn in the barrel.
This past Wednesday, my neighbor called me at work and said “Your garage door is open and the side door to your garage is BUSTED open. It looks like you were robbed.”
Yep. Bastards came in and did a smash and grab. Took lots of stuff. Tools, wife’s jewelry, electronics. Still compiling the list and it looks sh***y! I have a Kegerator and they tried some of the Fat Tire then took the Miller Lite out of the garage fridge crisper. How’d they know it was in the crisper?
Effin’ PUNKS. I have nothing but disdain and displeasure for the pieces of crap that breaks into a person’s home.
They also took the keys hanging on our key rack. The turds now have the spare key to my Volvo and the insurance company said they will not cover re-keying the car. Has anyone had to deal with insurance covering re-keying a vehicle? I know this is going to be a negotiating process with the adjuster. Oh joy! Another funny thing he said was “We can settle this claim quickly and let you get your life back in order so, get your list compiled ASAP. We can settle in as little as a week.”
HA! The chances of that happening are as slim as catching the s-heads that broke into my house. I will settle when I'm damn good and ready.
Anyway, home is re-keyed and door secured. I’m still noticing things missing from my garage. I must admit, it isn't the most organized place. At first I didn’t think they got any tools because my Milwaukee drill and case was still there. And the bicycles, carpet cleaner and other items that I thought would be gone for sure were still here.

Just plain sucks.

[RickM]

Don,

Very sorry to hear the bad news! I've had cars broken into and I felt totally violated. I can't imagine someone going through my house. Do you figure it was done by a couple of kids or pros?

Anyway, perhaps a lesson to the rest of us is to walk around the house with a digital camera or camcorder and record each worthwhile asset with serial numbers etc. Then burn onto a CD. Sounds anal but how much grief would this eliminate.

Think about setting a trap to somehow catch these scum next time they attemp a break-in. I've seen relatively inexpensive motion detecting cameras for snapping wildlife pics.

[tabs]

I truely empathize with you. I don't go far or stay away from home for long. Too many construction workers in the neighborhood. But I got the best home defense system available for when I'm out. I keep my 2 Airdales in the house...George is 118 lb and Misty is 61 lb. I don't think anyone in their right mind would come in the house with those 2 dogs here.

[RickM]

Good point. A dog is your best deterrent.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Good god, man that just sucks.

Let us know if we can help you guys out in any way!

[Adam]

That blows!

I hope you get it sorted out the way you want it! Here's hoping they'll actually catch the punks. I'd maybe spend a day and have a look at pawnshops in your town.

A friend of mine was robbed when he was at work and decided to canvas the pawnshops. He found most of his stuff at three stores, which lead to an arrest a few days later. Criminal theives are typically creatures of habit.

Good Luck!

[Eric Coffey]

Man, that sucks. I don't think there is anything more threatening to one's sense of security than a home invasion (well, maybe a home invasion while you're home!). There has been a recent rash of that crap here. Punks beating, then robbing old people. That has to be the lowest form of life. You say they took the keys to your Volvo? Hmmm, if only there was a way to wire the door handles for 220V AC and leave it parked outside. I would pay to see the look on the degenerate's face as the key touched the lock. Hehe.
[/rant]

[pwd72s]

Is your home alarmed? Suggest you do so. The recording of valuables is also a super idea. Cindy & I have done that, with a 2nd set of records being kept by our daughter who lives in another state. We do the same for her.

[LeeH]

Don,

Sorry to hear about the break in. I can only imagine the feelings you are experiencing right now. Does the Volvo sit out or is it usually garaged? It might be time for a non-passive alarm (ie won't be disabled by unlocking the door).

You have the right idea about taking your time in inventorying the loss. Our neighbor had their garage broken into and were still discovering missing items weeks later. Please let us know if there's anything we can do to help.

[DonDavis]

Thanks everyone. Your wishes are well received.

I do have a few things to say about what happened but time is short. We are doing ok and still compiling the list. More tools are gone than I realized. During the installation of my door (that was busted down) I found more and more items from the garage are gone.

More on this later.

Back to the re-keying of my Volvo....

Anyone have experience in dealing with insurance companies covering this cost?

[Sarah]

I don't know about insurance but I used to be a police officer and the person who said check the pawn shops was right. We used to go get stolen items all the time from Pawn shops where the victim found items that were theirs, but the pawn shop won't release the items to them. They have to be picked up as stolen property and then the paper process starts as to who sold it to them. It is worth a try to. Also...once your list is done...it should give you a pretty good indication of the age of the people who took the items. Good luck.

(had to edit this to correct all my fast typing mistakes...)

[MotoSook]

Wow! I feel for you Don. Best of luck to you.

Sarah is right, the stolen items can tell you a lot about the perps...hints of neighborhood teens.

Growing up, it was common to hear of kids from middle to upper middle income families who liked to break into houses. That being my neighborhood, I worry about day the kids in my subdivision are old enough to be thieves. I always have my garage door open when I'm home, and I'm always working one my cars or motorcycle...or my friend's cars. Some of those neighbor kids may get it in their heads one day that I have stuff worth stealing. Perhaps I need to replace my old dog soon.

Good luck!

[RickM]

Check Ebay as well. If someone is stupid enough to rob you they may be stupid enough to list it. Additionally, it may behoove you to ask a trusted neighborhood kid to keep his/her eyes and ears open. Kids like to brag about this stuff.