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Stolen Car Recovered With 11,000 More Miles -- and Lyft Stickers (sfgate.com)
The San Francisco Bay Area has more car thefts than any region in America, according to SFGate.com. A National Insurance Crime Bureau report found that between 2012 and 2014, there were an average of 30,000 car thefts a year just in the cities of San Francisco, Oakland and Hayward. But one theft took a strange turn. An anonymous reader quotes their report: Cierra and Josh Barton purchased a new Honda HR-V at the beginning of summer. It was stolen while parked in front of their Livermore apartment complex at the end of August. Four months later, Hayward police called the Bartons to say they had recovered the vehicle... What they found, to their surprise, was a car in relatively good shape -- a few dents, a rattling hood. But in the back and front windows were Lyft stickers, Cierra Barton said.
The odometer had spiked from 2,000 miles to more than 13,000. And in the back seat, Cierra said she found a pillow, a jacket and a stuffed animal. "It wasn't burned out, it wasn't gutted, but it appeared to be have been used as a Lyft," she said. That, Cierra added, was even worse than she imagined. "Not only did someone steal our car, they made money off it!"
Lyft says that "Given the information provided, we are unable to match this vehicle to any Lyft accounts in the area," adding they "stand ready to assist law enforcement in any investigation."
The odometer had spiked from 2,000 miles to more than 13,000. And in the back seat, Cierra said she found a pillow, a jacket and a stuffed animal. "It wasn't burned out, it wasn't gutted, but it appeared to be have been used as a Lyft," she said. That, Cierra added, was even worse than she imagined. "Not only did someone steal our car, they made money off it!"
Lyft says that "Given the information provided, we are unable to match this vehicle to any Lyft accounts in the area," adding they "stand ready to assist law enforcement in any investigation."
"Not only did someone steal our car, they made money off it!"
Is it not usually understood that is why they are stealing your car? For some sort of profit. Oh sure the occasional joy ride here and there but most of the time chopped into little pieces or sold of in another country. Using it for a taxi is a new twist.
Stick shift.
"Not only did someone steal our car, they made money off it!"
What happens with stolen goods normally, for $200, Alex?
The insurance company probably already paid the claim after four months. In that case they'd typically allow the original owner to buy it back (unlikely since they probably bought some other car by now) and, failing that, the insurance company would now own the car with a salvage title. It'll likely go to auction and might end up at a low end used car lot or parted out. Not too different from the fate of your average stolen car after all.