question about car theft

YOUR STATE NAME - Kansas

Ok...yesterday, at work, my car was stolen from out in front of our office. It was broad daylight. I cannot carry full coverage on the car due to it being damaged by hail and "totaled" by my insurance company. Normally, I go home for lunch every day as it is only a few miles from my work, but yesterday I had to go to lunch with one of our vendors and I rode with him in his car. When I returned to work, my car was gone. Upon questioning fellow employees upon my return, one said that she saw the car drive off right about the time I normally go to lunch and didn't think anything of it, assuming it was me going home for lunch. Does my company or their insurance have any liability toward the loss of my car and it's contents (I had a loss of contents of over $2000) since the theft occured on their property? What about the circumstances under which is happened, does that change the liability any? Thanks.

John

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Originally posted by dode32
YOUR STATE NAME - Kansas

Ok...yesterday, at work, my car was stolen from out in front of our office. It was broad daylight. I cannot carry full coverage on the car due to it being damaged by hail and "totaled" by my insurance company. Normally, I go home for lunch every day as it is only a few miles from my work, but yesterday I had to go to lunch with one of our vendors and I rode with him in his car. When I returned to work, my car was gone. Upon questioning fellow employees upon my return, one said that she saw the car drive off right about the time I normally go to lunch and didn't think anything of it, assuming it was me going home for lunch. Does my company or their insurance have any liability toward the loss of my car and it's contents (I had a loss of contents of over $2000) since the theft occured on their property? What about the circumstances under which is happened, does that change the liability any? Thanks.

John

My response:

Why would you think that your company is liable for the theft of your car? What is your theory of liability?

IAAL

If someone comes over to my house, and a tree falls on their car, then my insurance pays. I don't understand how this would be any different.

Aren't you responsible for what happens on your property?

John

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Originally posted by dode32
If someone comes over to my house, and a tree falls on my car, then my insurance pays. I don't understand how this would be any different.

John

My response:

You mean, if a tree falls on your guest's car?

. . . and, no you wouldn't. Not unless you had "Notice" that the tree was defective in some manner; i.e., that it was imminently going to fall and failed to warn your guest.

Listen, I think you should do some studying about "premises liability" and specifically, a landowner's liability for the criminal acts of third parties. You'll find that a landowner is not liable because a landowner is not an "insurer" of your safety, or the safety of other people's property.

I'll give you the short answer - - you've got nothing.

IAAL

yes, that is what I meant...I typed it wrong, and then edited...

ok...where could I find information such as that? I have been looking, but haven't found anything. this forum is all that I could come up with. thanks.

John

one other thing...for my own knowledge...

does that mean that no personal property is covered under business insurance?

John

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

My response:

John, take a look at this by clicking on this link. Substitute the word injury for the word "damages"; i.e., you weren't physically injured, but you did suffer "damages" as a result of the theft of your vehicle. Suffering "damages" is also considered an "injury" under the law - - an injury to your wallet.

[url]http://www.kansaslawyers.com/premise.htm[/url]

Hopefully, you will be able to understand the theories being discussed because, unless you have a legal background, some of the ideas expressed will appear to be confusing, contradictory or convoluted.

You'll also read about some of the concepts I've discussed here.

Come back and we'll discuss it. It's a fairly interesting subject and, perhaps, someone else who reads this thread might also learn something.

IAAL

You had me worried for a minute as to what I was going to be reading. I am an engineer, so I am used to dealing with technical and sometimes confusing documents. From what I am reading, we are talking about this:

What duty does a business proprietor have to protect customers from criminal acts?
The owner of a business has a duty to provide security for patrons or customers on the premises when circumstances exist from which the owner could reasonably foresee there is a risk of peril above and beyond the ordinary and that appropriate security measures should be taken. The test you must use is whether under the totality of the circumstances, a reasonable owner could foresee that patrons or customers have a risk of being victims of criminal acts above and beyond what is ordinarily expected. Some of the factors you should take into account are: (a) Whether the location is in a known high-crime area: (b) The amount of lighting; (c) The time of day that the crime was committed; (d) Prior incidents involving crimes upon patrons; and (e) The economic feasibility of a reasonable level of security.

Ok...here are the details of the situation...the area is not known as a "high" crime area I don't think, but that is one of those gray areas. I will say that the business is not in the friendliest parts of town. We are located at the end of a dead end, so our traffic, other than normal comings and goings, is very limited. The lighting is not an issue because it occurred in broad daylight in the middle of the day. I do not know of many previous crimes such as this. I do know that there is no security per se at our business, ie no camera's, gates, etc. The one special circumstance that was present was that yesterday was the day that our company accepts applications (manufacturing company), so we had a large number of "new" people on the premesis. The other point is that had I not had to go to lunch with the vendors, my car would not have been present as I would not have been on the premesis during the time when I can confirm the theft occurred since I leave for lunch every day.

I am by no means an expert in the legal field, but am merely providing details as to the situation. I do very much appreciate the link to that website. It was very good information, and I have actually bookmarked it for future reference.

Thank you very much for your assistance.

John