Cara Grimshaw's gear has been stolen

[Ali Ledgerwood]

Hey everyone,

This past Saturday, Cara Grimshaw's car was broken into while she was shooting a gig. All of her camera gear was taken.    She is devastated and has been told that her insurance wouldn't cover it.  She has some loaner gear for the next few weeks, but as you can imagine, trying to replace all the gear is going to be tough.

A Go-Fund-Me has been started by one of her friends, and you can find the link here:  https://www.gofundme.com/f/caragrimshaw

If you can help, it is hugely appreciated. 

[Warren Toda]

Every photographer needs to pay attention here because many of us will get gear stolen from our vehicles sooner or later.

Insurance will usually cover gear stolen from a vehicle but only under certain circumstances. Usually there must be signs of forced entry and some insurance companies require that the gear was stolen from a locked compartment (i.e. the gear wasn't left sitting on the front seat). You must also file a police report.

The cabin of a vehicle is not considered a locked compartment. This means that hatchbacks, minivans and SUVs usually do not have a locked compartment. But there are a few exceptions - I once had a Taurus wagon that had a locked compartment under the rear deck.

If your policy requires a locked compartment, and your car doesn't have a trunk, then you should buy or make a lockable box that fits in the back of your vehicle and is either bolted or chained to your vehicle.

Insurance deductibles are usually much higher for gear stolen from a vehicle.

If nothing else, go to a hardware store and buy a long, lockable steel cable (ideally plastic coated) that you can loop through all your straps and handles and then secure it to your rear seats. This should at least slow the thief down.