Speaking German
How to report a theft to the police, in German
If you are in the chair right now
Mir wurde die Tasche gestohlen. Ich möchte eine Anzeige erstatten.
My bag has been stolen. I'd like to file a report.
If that gets brushed off
Vor einer Stunde, in der U-Bahn. Handy, Geldbeutel und Schlüssel waren drin.
An hour ago, on the U-Bahn. Phone, wallet and keys were inside.
Notice where you went in that sentence: into the dative. «Mir wurde die Tasche gestohlen» — to me the bag was stolen. German marks the victim with mir, and Anzeige erstatten is the fixed phrase for the report itself, the one your insurer will ask about.
Nobody plans for this, and it arrives at the worst possible moment for grammar: you are rattled, your phone is gone, and the first sentence you need happens to be in the dative. It is worth having that sentence ready before you ever need it.
If you need more than one line
neutral
Mir wurde der Geldbeutel gestohlen.
My wallet has been stolen. Swap in: das Handy, der Rucksack, der Pass.
neutral
Ich möchte eine Anzeige erstatten.
I'd like to file a report. The fixed phrase — melden tells someone, Anzeige erstatten starts the paperwork.
neutral
Das war heute Morgen, in der Nähe vom Bahnhof.
It was this morning, near the station.
firmest
Ich brauche eine Bestätigung für die Versicherung.
I need written confirmation for the insurance. The reason you came, and worth saying out loud.
Two things worth knowing
This is the one conversation you will have while too rattled to decline anything.
The victim goes in the dative
«Meine Tasche wurde gestohlen» is correct, but Germans reach for «mir wurde die Tasche gestohlen» — the loss happened to you, and mir says so up front. It is the same dative of misfortune as in «mir ist das Handy runtergefallen», and using it is one of those small signals that you speak German rather than translate into it.
Anzeige erstatten is a form, not a feeling
Eine Anzeige is the specific administrative act that opens a file, produces an Aktenzeichen — the case number — and gives your insurer something to hold. Germany lets you do it online too (die Onlinewache, in most Bundesländer), but in person or on the web, the phrase is the same, and the confirmation with the Aktenzeichen is the thing to leave with.
What Max actually said
What you have to get done
- State what was taken and where it was taken from
- Explain the appearance of the bag and list what was inside
- Provide details about when the incident happened
Max
Please tell me what happened.
You
Yes, of course. My bag was just stolen from me right outside, and I'm trying to reconstruct the sequence as precisely as I can.
Max
That sounds very distressing; take your time, I'm listening carefully.
You
Thank you, I appreciate that. It was a dark blue leather shoulder bag; inside were my wallet, my ID, my keys and a notebook.
Max
Thank you, that description is very helpful; when did you last have the bag with you?
You
I last had the bag about ten minutes ago, standing at the bus stop in front of the building; only shortly afterwards did I notice it was gone.
Max
Thank you, I've noted everything; we'll be in touch as soon as there's news. Goodbye.
The whole conversation, unedited
A real run in the app, nothing scripted on the officer's side. The transcript above is taken from this recording, and the objectives tick off on screen as they are met.
Turn sound on to hear it.
Now say it yourself
Reading that is not the same as producing it with someone waiting, which is the entire difficulty. You can have this exact conversation in the app: Max is a third of the way through, and you have three things to get done.
It is free, it takes about a minute to start, and the first attempt is allowed to be terrible.
Practise this conversation
