Should I file a stolen car after the car got impounded? 21 Answers as of February 17, 2012

By talking to the police you have done what you need. In Connecticut you are just as responsible for an accident if the driver had your permission to use your car. Since this driver did not you should be fine. That doesn't mean there won't be an effort to bring a claim against you. Your insurance company must be put on notice to defend you.

Your question seems to relate to possible criminal charges being filed against you. I do not practice criminal law and cannot give you any advice regarding your potential criminal liability. I would strongly suggest contacting a criminal attorney to learn about your rights and potential liability. As to your civil liability, as it was your vehicle, which you did loan out, your insurance policy will have to pay any property damage or injury claims to the other vehicle involved arising from the accident. You also would have to use your Collision Coverage, and pay your deductible, for repairs to your vehicle. A vehicle's insurance policy is always primary over that of any driver. As to your potential personal, civil liability, over and above your insurance policy limits, you may be liable although more information would be necessary to be able to fully answer this question.

Protect? You loaned your car to an idiot who loaned it to someone else etc etc etc. Why would the police or insurance company not make some investigation. Some police consider hit and run as serious. Don't report the car stolen if it were not stolen.

If you are concerned that the police do not believe that you were not the person operating the vehicle, you ought to talk to a criminal lawyer who can help you make sure you do everything possible to exonerate yourself. Ideally, the person who was driving will come forward and admit what he/she did.

You can't protect yourself from an investigation, but you are responsible for any damage done by your car when the car is being operated by a permissive user. If that person turned around and loaned it out to yet another person, then you would not be responsible. It's technically not a stolen car, so you don't need to file a report, but you do need to advise your insurance company that the person who was operating the car when the accident happened was not a person to whom you had given consent to operate the vehicle.

Do not file a stolen car report, as it was not technically "stolen". The car was driven without your consent by the unknown driver ( if you now know who it was, tell the police ASAP). Your insurance company (if you have insurance on the car) may not cover you in this situation, but you must tell them exactly how it came about and tell them the truth just like the police. Don't every loan your car out to anyone for any reason, because this is what always seems to happen when it is out of your control. Do not lie about or withhold any information on this situation if you are innocent the truth will set you free.

Tell the hit and run driver to turn herself into the police. She can probably say she hit her head and had some amnesia. You should tell her you will call the police tomorrow and tell them what happened. You haven't committed a crime yet. If you didn't have full coverage, your friend should be sued by you in small claims court for damages up to the value of the car. Impound fees will soon exceed the value of the damaged car. If it is street legal and driveable, then it is probably worth retrieving and using as a disposable car until it dies mechanically. Don't try to coverup for anyone, especially a scumbag hit and run coward. She now has beaten the DUI charge. If you do absolutely nothing more, including trying to file an insurance claim or retrieve the vehicle then the investigation will soon fall off the police radar and become an unsolved mystery. If you are willing to forget the value of your trashed car, then walk away. Your silence will protect the guilty party. That may be a crime of conspiracy, depending on what you have already said. So my primary advice is to report what you know to the police and don't lie to them if you decide to talk to them.

Basically you should file a claim with your insurance company and notify them that the person who was involved in the accident was operating same without youjr permission. The car was impounded for what reason, was it ever reported stolen. Unless you claim same was stolen, a police report would not be in order.

You have done everything right so far. As far as the police report goes, you should make sure that they have a statement from you, not just that you talked to them. Whether that would qualify as a "stolen" car, leave it up to them to determine. Same with the insurance company. They may want to have you submit to an Examination Under Oath, and if they do, it would be a good idea to have a lawyer sitting next to you. As for "protecting" yourself "from the investigation", you are not the one who needs protection, its the other two guys.

In my view, there are positive and negative effects of filing a stolen car report with the police: Positive: The criminal implications of the hit & run will not lead to your implication. Negative: Your auto liability insurance carrier will not pay for the damages, and any damaged party may choose to sue you personally. They may allege that you were negligent in loaning your car out originally.

If you report the car as stolen, you will be committing crimes that could be charged as a Felony. You know that the car was not stolen. You do not tell us what you seek to protect yourself from. You and your insurance are liable for any injury or property damage caused by the hit and run. The driver and your friend who loaned the car are also individually and severally liable. This just means that if there was $50,000.00 worth of damage to the car or person who was hit, the full $50,000.00 can be recovered from any one of you.