West Midlands Police

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Every day the police receive thousands of calls for help. The call handler will take initial details from you. A decision will then be made as to whether an officer attends or further details are obtained there and then over the phone. The decision will be made based on individual circumstances. The fact that the call handler takes your report does not mean the matter will be treated less seriously.

Before calling the police, try to have the following information to hand:

Your name, address and contact telephone number
The name, age and address of the owner of the vehicle and where they can be contacted
The registration number, make and colour of the vehicle
The name and address of the person who was in charge of the vehicle when the offence happened
The time and place where the crime occurred and details of anything that was stolen from the vehicle

Your call will be dealt with by a help desk, which is a dedicated ‘nerve centre’ for receiving calls. If your vehicle has just been stolen, patrolling police officers in the area will be alerted to be on the lookout for it. Details will also be placed on the Police National Computer, which gives access to officers all over the country.
When the details have been recorded, you will be provided with a crime reference number. West Midlands Police treat vehicle crime seriously and will pursue a number of lines of enquiry for each offence reported. For example, if you report property stolen from your car it may be appropriate to forensically examine the car and any contents left behind.
If you car is stolen and later found it will be recovered and taken to a secure garage. This will be at your expense. You may be able to recover these costs from your insurance company.

You will be notified that your vehicle has been found and at which garage it can be collected from. Storage charges may also apply if you do not collect it within 24 hours.

Benefits of storage:

It reduces the risk of further damage being caused to your vehicle
It removes the opportunity of it being stolen again
It protects you from collecting it from a possibly undesirable location
It protects forensic evidence, which will increase the chance of identifying the thief

Officers will try to keep you informed about the progress of your case and will tell you if someone is arrested and charged. Obviously, you can make enquiries yourself at any stage by contacting the help desk and quoting your crime reference number.