Theft can occur anytime, anywhere

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By JIM KLEPPER
The Trucker News Services

10/30/2008

Mr. Klepper:

Advice please. I went down to friend’s house for Labor Day weekend. I parked my assigned truck at the terminal of the company I work for. I returned on Monday around 5 p.m. and was talking with my brother when I unlocked my truck I noticed the passenger side door unlocked. I told him that my door was unlocked and he told me to check out my truck and I notice my laptop bag was missing and I hung on him told him I would call back later.

I called 911 and my dispatcher or whomever was working and told him that the truck was broken into and someone stolen my laptop bag and all. The city police showed up they took a statement from me. I went through some things and found that my storage keys were missing along with some other old keys all on this key ring. Also missing were 10 checks out of my check book that I hardly use, along with the contents in the messenger bag the Dell laptop was in and a creative notebook webcam/USB cables/TV remote/DVD remote/notes and mini-Phillips digital camera. There is a lot of info on this laptop including, addresses and telephone numbers. Whoever got in here did not take the can full of change of between $200-$300. They also left behind a digital camera and a 35mm camera, 2 boxes of electronics (DVDS/CDs). I talked with shop foreman about the gate not being locked and was informed by him that it has not worked in a month.

I went and talked to the recruiting manager and he told me that he had to punch in the numbers to get into the gate. So me and other driver get up and leave. Now I have two different tales. I have called the clerk to get copy of report to be faxed to the claims department. There is no company policy that I could find and I would like to have my laptop back or replaced, but it was custom built from Dell and I have paper work on this also. This was my work PC. I felt that it would be safe here at the terminal locked up in the truck and I had the keys. Someone had to have a key to get in. The recruiting manger told me I was accusing the maintenance and that's not what I said, I said somebody had to have a key to get in. So I am staying at them and all I am getting from them is one person to the next. There is a lot of info on this pc and the truck manger said I did not see why anyone would want my laptop?

What is wrong with this picture? I am looking at identity theft. And I have called all my friends and family and I have made a few changes just in case. But this company is just blowing me off and I want justice. I want it to be replaced and their security fixed. What can I do?

First, you should check with the company about their policy regarding lost or stolen items on the company property. The policy may be as simple as “not responsible for lost or stolen item on company property” or it could be specific and say they are only responsible for items registered with the company and notice given within 12 hours of loss. However, I suspect that your company like most companies has either the “Not Responsible” policy or no written policy at all. You may want to ask the company to report the loss on their insurance and see if it will be replaced.

Remember, all insurance policies are contracts. Those insurance contracts govern your rights and what you may recover. Hurricane Katrina is a good example of how insurance contracts are enforced. People filed claims for damage after the flooding and wind had damaged their homes. The insurance companies pointed to their policies that said they would pay for wind damage, but not water damage. They then denied damage claims that involved water damages as the contracts stated.

Later, the public outcry led to government intervention and finally class action lawsuits. The courts finally held that the insurance carriers must pay for more damages than they had originally paid. The court also required the insurance carriers to rewrite their contracts to eliminate the confusion between wind and water damages.

Your best bet to get your laptop replaced is through your homeowner’s insurance policy or renter’s insurance policy. You may even check with your auto insurance policy to see if your laptop is covered. Most likely, your insurance will not cover it unless you have a specific rider on electronics or the insurance will have a flat amount they will pay, after you meet the deductable, for your loss.

Second, you should follow up with the company to get the gate repaired, if it is broken. If employees have to enter a code to get in, then their expectation of privacy or safety is increased. Should they rely on that expectation of safety and foul play befalls them, they may have a cause of action against the landlord of the property. This expectation of safety varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.

One way to explain this theory of tort law is to consider the rape and kidnapping of a young woman from the parking lot of a large retail shopping center. The law has three definitions for people who are not the owner to be on a property: an invitee, a licensee or a trespasser.

An invitee is one who comes onto the property for business purposes, an example would be a person who goes into the supermarket to shop for food. A licensee is one who is on the property not open to the public but where the owner allowed him to enter, an example would be someone you invite over for dinner or a party. A trespasser is on a property without the permission of the owner, an example would be a burglar. The legal rights of a trespasser are less than those of invitees or licensees.

When the young lady came onto the property to shop, she expected to return to her car and go home without being kidnapped. The property owner has a duty to make the property safe for the invitee or shopper which include inspections to uncover hidden dangers such as blind spots or parking lot lights that are out. If any problems have occurred before, then the landlord is on notice of that danger and responsible to take appropriate steps to prevent the danger. That is why you see “mall security” driving around the parking lots to protect the shoppers.

I understand your frustration. When a third party, a criminal, comes onto property and violates personal property, the landlord also has legal rights because they did not participate in the theft and had no expectation the criminal would come onto their property. However, if this type of criminal activity has occurred in the recent past, then the landlord will be held to a higher standard and be required to provide more protection from the criminal. In your case, the issue falls to the questions of whether or not the gate lock was working properly, how long it has not worked if broken, and whether or not the landlord knew about the gate being broken and thus not providing the protection you deserved.

Jim C. Klepper is president of Interstate Trucker Ltd., a law firm entirely dedicated to legal defense of the nation's commercial drivers. Interstate Trucker represents truck drivers throughout the 48 states on both moving and non-moving violations. Jim is also president of Drivers Legal Plan, which allows member drivers access to his firm’s services at greatly discounted rates. Jim, a former prosecutor, is also a registered pharmacist, with considerable experience in alcohol and drug related cases. He is a lawyer that has focused on transportation law and the trucking industry in particular. He works to answer your legal questions about trucking and life over-the-road and has his Commercial Driver’s License.

Contact him at (800) 333-3748 or interstatetrucker.com and driverslegalplan.com.