Re: Some police Depts in the US won't take reports for stolen phones
Many years ago (in the UK) I lost my phone. I reported it to the insurance and they needed a police reference number.
I went to the police station and reported my phone was missing. They got a clipboard out, wrote down a description and gave me a number. I go back to the insurers and got my new phone a week or so later.
Skip forward ~18 months I lose my phone again. In anticipation of the question from the insurers I went to the police station and asked to report a missing phone. The copper behind the desk said I couldn't.
"If there hasn't been a crime there isn't anything to report to us".
Fair enough I say, but you did this not that long ago. He re-iterated the line about there not being a crime. I explained that without it I can't claim on my insurance. He reiterated the line about there not having been a crime.
This repeats a couple more times before I give up, pause, look him in the eye and say...
"I'd like to report a stolen phone please"
If his eyes had rolled any harder I would have got the jackpot. He proceeds to take out a form and record the details that I was *clearly* making up on the spot about how it was on the table in the pub and how it was suddenly not there.
He doesn't look too happy about it. I get a crime reference number.
I report it to my insurers who go away to process it, 2 days later I'm in bed when my phone rings(!)*, I fish it out from down the side of the bed where it must have fallen when I drunkenly collapsed into bed on the night it went missing.
It was the insurance company telling me that my claim had been approved and where did I want the new phone shipped too?
I told them I'd found it thanks and they could cancel the claim.
*This was a while ago when a phone would last 4+ days without a charge.