personal property stolen from company car
catherinetnc
79 Posts
One of our salesmen had his company car broken into and some personal property stolen. He wants company to reimburse him for stolen property rather than make claim to his homeowner's insurance. Salesperson argues he was "on the job" when this happened, so its company's responsibility to reimburse him.
Any advice? Looks like we need a policy for this -
Thanks-
Catherine
Any advice? Looks like we need a policy for this -
Thanks-
Catherine
Comments
What was stolen? Let me guess, an Ipod?
We, the company, are not responsible for your personal property. Makes no difference if you are at work or traveling on the road, the ee is responsible for their personal property. Suggest he contacts his personal insurance company regarding his personal property.
If you have not told your ee's this in advance, via handbook, etc... you might outta considering adding it.
Good luck.
I would not even consider it.
He fussed about it to the CEO and we paid for the damage. Less than a year later, it happened again. He fussed to the CEO and again, we paid for it. When it happened a 3rd time a few months later we paid again. This time the doctor was informed that it would not be paid for again. Miraculously, it never happened again.
If you want your employees to be careless with their things, by all means, pay for the stolen items.
BTW, we had a petty thief once at that same company. The thief would come around after hours and take little personal items off of people's desks. For instance, a co-worker had one of those coffee mugs with a lid which you could also use as a coaster. The lid was stolen, but not the mug. I had been tossing coins into a small jar in my drawer (which few knew about) trying to save up for a family outing. It disappeared too (and I had no idea how much was there). I was not unhappy when the company reimbursed us. In this case, about 40% of the employees had been victimized, and really, you ought to be able to leave a coaster on your desk.
We tried setting a trap for the thief, but they decided to stop while they were ahead.
Good luck!
Nae
An employee's personal property is just that-personal. Losses of same should be his or her own responsibility.
You don't need a policy for this and you don't need to open up a "can of worms."
While it is unfortunate the person had their personal property stolen, it is NOT the responsibility of the employer. Have them complete police reports and turn in to their insurance carrier.
We recently had reimbursed an employee for things stolen from her office by a drifter. A few weeks later, when an EE's $1800 mountain bike was stolen, we enacted a policy to put a stop to this. Employers should not be responsible for what employees bring to work.
We wrote a policy to the effect of "personal effects brought to work are the sole responsibility of the employee, and the employer assumes no liability for said effects."
If you'd like a copy, shoot me an e-mail.
Good luck!
James Sokolowski
HRhero.com