Stolen Rental Car

Toyota Camry

My flight back to Charlotte from St. Louis was scheduled in the early afternoon of September 28th. I left my friend's house at 9:45, and drove my Toyota Camry rental car to a Phillip 66 gas station that was located near the rental return area across from Lambert St. Louis International Airport. I pulled up to the front pump, exited the car and inserted my credit card into the pump, which was on the driver's side of the car. There was a man at the pump next to me, and a man and a woman on motorcycles at the pump behind me. It was 10:30 on a Saturday morning.

I had just unscrewed the gas cap and was looking to see if the car had a place to store it while filling up, and the lady with the motorcycle started yelling. I looked at her to see what was wrong, and she said, "Your car! Your car!" I turned back around and saw my car moving. My first thought was that I had forgotten to put it in park. But then the car sped up and pealed around the back of the station. The woman yelled that the guy who took my car had gotten out of a black car, which I saw going out the opposite exit of the gas station. The black car had no markings or license plate on it. Apparently the thief got out of the black car, crouched down low and climbed into the passenger door, then scrambled over the center console to get to the driver's seat. I had not unlocked the passenger door that day, and apparently the car did not have the safety feature of only unlocking the driver's door when the button is pushed on the key fob. My own car automatically does that, so it didn't occur to me to check the other door when I got out.

To say that I was stunned is a vast understatement. I just could not comprehend what had just happened. My phone was in the car, and I keep my driver's license, insurance card and debit card in the phone case. And of course my suitcase and backpack were in the vehicle since I was on my way to the airport.

I dashed into the station and asked the clerk to call the police because my car had just been stolen. He said he didn't know the phone number. Really? It's 911, I told him. Then he said he had to call his manager to get the number. If he wasn't in on this whole deal, I'd be greatly surprised. While waiting for him, the man at the next pump came in. I'll refer to him as John, though I know his real name. He gave me his phone so that I could call Budget to let them know about the car. I explained to the lady who answered the phone that my car had just been stolen. She asked me for the license number. Again, really? I said the car is gone, I don't know the license number. Then she wanted my reservation number. Hello, my phone is gone along with the car so I can't look that up! I suggested she just look up my rental agreement with my name. By then the police had shown up, and I said to the woman, "You have a transponder on that car, can't you tell the police where it is right now?" She told me that I needed to just calm down. Hmmm...I handed her over to the policeman so he could give her his information.

John let me use his phone to call my husband, who was off on a motorcycle trip with his friend somewhere in the middle of Missouri. His plan was to fly home on the following Wednesday. I knew Jim wouldn't answer a call from an unknown number, so I left a message. Fortuitously, he and his friend had just stopped for a break so he actually listened to the voicemail right away. He said they would head back to St. Louis immediately.

In the meantime, John tried to give the policeman the business card from the eyewitness (woman on the motorcycle saw it all), and he said he didn't need it as he would review the surveillance tape. He never interviewed me to see what happened or what I had in the car, or John to see what he knew. He did say that four cars a week (!) get stolen from that gas station as well as the QT down the street. He was very matter of fact about it. He said they were going to go down the road, throw my stuff out the window, and use the car for other mischief.

The cop then asked where I wanted him to take me because "ma'am, it isn't safe for you here." He wanted to take me back to Budget and when I asked why he said so I could rent another car. I reminded him that I was on the way to return the car so I could fly home. And he said you aren't going home today with no ID. The cop gave me his name, badge number, and case number, and then he and the other two cops took off.

I was at a loss as to what to do or where to go. I don't have any phone numbers memorized (except my husband's) since they are stored in my phone, and I couldn't even come up with anyone's address. My new friend John (who is a professional driver) said he would take me where I needed to go. I didn't know the address of where my husband would ultimately show up, but I could direct John on how to get there.

John was a rock for me, and somewhat restored my faith in humanity. His wife made some calls to see how I could go about flying with no ID. She found some helpful information. When we got to our friend's, I had no way to pay him for all of his help and kindness. But I got his address so I could mail him a thank you gift.

Once inside our friend's house I used their phone to cancel my debit card and talk to the airline. My ticket allowed for no changes, and while they were sympathetic they would not budge on giving me a credit for the flight. Once Jim got there we went to the Apple store to replace my phone. While the employee was able to get me set up with my Verizon service, we could not transfer anything over to my new phone because I couldn't sign into my iCloud account. Where is my password stored? On the stolen phone. Luckily I had my phone passcode protected, so the thieves couldn't get into it and it no longer had any cell service on it once I transferred to the new phone. And with the new phone, the police could get in contact with me if need be.

We had to cancel Jim's flight for Wednesday, and again lost that money. We booked both of us to fly home the next day. That night I slept in a shirt I borrowed from Jim as all I had were the clothes on my back. Sunday at the airport I found out it is possible to fly without an ID. More in my next post...