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Original poster

Do police ever find a stolen car

59 replies

Ceci03 · 04/12/2023 01:47

So my friends car was stolen from outside her home. She reported it to the police on wed morning. She checked back on Fri and was told the case hadn't been assigned yet. She is devastated. It was an old car but was her independence. Her little girl has autism and is so upset , where is the car she wants to know. Where is her special car seat.

Does anyone have any experience. I don't know what to tell my friend

OP posts:
margotrose · 04/12/2023 05:25

Yes, my parents' car was found within three days - unfortunately it was found smashed into a wall several hundred miles away!

TotalAbsenceOfImperialRaiment · 04/12/2023 03:33

Stolen cars are sometimes found, often burnt out or in a damaged condition. Sometimes they never turn up because they have left the country, or been stripped down for parts, or been sold on the black market with false index plates and no documents. I think your friend should assume the worst and claim on her insurance.

CurlsnSunshinetime4tea · 04/12/2023 03:06

we were travelling with food in the trunk when our car was stolen and taken for a joy ride (evident by mileage put on) abandoned in an underground car park and found 10-14 days later.
by this time the insurance had paid us out, but the police suggested against us taking back the car as you have no way of knowing the full damage, which would not be covered by further insurance.
when they called us they asked if we had food in the car (yes) or if they should be looking for a dead body hidden in the trunk...
they said the smell would never come out of the insulation.

Original poster
Ceci03 · 04/12/2023 02:29

That's terrible @XelaM . She has been taking taxis to and from school. It's a nightmare. Her dd gets overwhelmed on the bus . I mean I thought with ANPR police could track a stolen car. How can someone be driving round in the car and not be the owner will they get caught for not having tax and insurance.

OP posts:
XenoBitch · 04/12/2023 02:25

Not a car, but in my case it was a moped. It was found, but the thieves had caused damage to unlock it, and then rode it about until it was useless anyway.
It was a write off.

Aquamarine1029 · 04/12/2023 02:20

The police don't have time to actively look for stolen cars. It's unfortunate, but it's the truth. When one is found, it is usually due to it's involvement in another crime or by happenstance.

I'm very sorry for your friend. She must be devastated.

Achdinnae · 04/12/2023 02:20

Offer local taxi drivers, postmen and delivery drivers a reward for finding it. A bottle of whisky,malt if the car is still drivable.

MintJulia · 04/12/2023 02:15

If the car seat is special, she could issue a social media plea for it to be returned. Try to guilt the thief's family to do the right thing. Get the local paper involved. Season of goodwill and all that.

XelaM · 04/12/2023 01:59

Unfortunately only bad experience. Police didn't care one bit when my dad's brand new car was stolen form outside my house and my neighbour even had ring doorbell footage of the exact moment it was stolen (faces of perpetrators were unclear). There was also street CCTV that the police didn't even bother to obtain, despite us pleading with them to request it. They were utterly useless and it also took them days to assign an officer in the case, by which time they said the car was probably already abroad. The only positive was that insurance paid out in full.

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