Yes, it can be claimed as a Casualty Loss if you file Schedule A and if your income allows it. When you lose an item due to an accident, theft, or act of nature, you may
have a tax deduction for the value of the property that is not
covered by your insurance.
The software will walk you through it, but here is how it
works: Individuals are required to claim
their casualty and theft losses as an itemized deduction on Form 1040, Schedule
A Itemized Deductions.
- For property held by you for
personal use, Subtracted any salvage value (zero for
theft) and any insurance or other reimbursement from the
loss amount.
- Then, subtract $100
from each casualty or theft event that occurred during the
year.
- Then, take that
amount and subtract 10% of your adjusted gross income from that total
to calculate your allowable casualty and theft losses for the year.
- That's the amount that goes on
your Schedule A Itemized Deductions.
If your property is personal-use property or is not completely destroyed,
the amount of your casualty loss is the lesser of:
- The adjusted basis of your
property, or
- The decrease in fair market
value of your property as a result of the casualty
More details can be found at this link http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc515.html
That said, the amount would have to be pretty large for you to be able
benefit. Also, you must file Schedule A as I stated above. But, if
you want to give it a shot in the Casualty and Theft section of the software,
it wouldn't hurt.
How to enter it into TurboTax: While
inside the software and working on your return, type casualty loss in
the Search at the top of the screen (you may see a magnifying glass there).
There will be a popup that says Jump to casualty loss.
Select that to get to the general area.
