- Under what circumstances can a stolen vehicle be seized in your country?
Stolen vehicle can be seized in Ukraine in the next cases:
the police cannot trace owner of a discovered vehicle;
holder of a vehicle cannot confirm the right of property on it (absence of registration or property certificate);
vehicle registration or property documents, vehicle identification number (VIN) have features of forgery;
vehicle was announced an evidence or subject in juridical proceeding;
discovered vehicle is recorded in the National database of stolen vehicles or the police have reasons to suspect that vehicle has been stolen.
- What channels are used to notify the owner of the vehicle’s location (Interpol or other)?
Usually Ukrainian law-enforcement authorities use INTERPOL channels to inform initiator of vehicle search about discovery of stolen car.
Alarm message about check of stolen vehicle in I-24/7 “Stolen vehicles” database by NCB Kyiv presumes possible vehicle discovery in Ukraine.
- Who is responsible for the storage of seized vehicles?
The responsibility for storage of seized vehicle lies on charge law-enforcement authority (police, customs house) and administration of the parking lot where seized vehicle is kept. - Are there any costs associated with storage of a seized stolen vehicle and who is responsible for these costs?
Different municipalities can charge for the storage of vehicles in their special car parks. Charges may vary. - How does a stolen vehicle get restored to its legal owner?
Do the police have authority to restore the vehicle?
Charge police unit has a power to recover seized stolen vehicle to legal owner in that case when the vehicle has not been alienated into a property of another in good faith.
Is it the local court who authorizes release of the vehicle?
The court decision is needed in the case when the stolen vehicle has already been alienated into a property of another in good faith.
Is it necessary to have a “commission rogatoire” to recover the vehicle?
If a stolen vehicle is linked with the criminal investigation a “commission rogatoire” may be necessary. Also the charge police authority of other countries, which have signed with Ukraine Bilateral or International Agreement about mutual legal assistance, may initiate the seizure of vehicle in Ukraine with aim to pass it to that authority and consequently return it to legal owner. The formal request for legal assistance should be sent as a commission rogatory by the highest judicial authority of foreign country to Prosecutor General Office of Ukraine through diplomatic channels.
What documentation does the owner have to provide in order to recover the vehicle?
The legal owner should possess: – documents, which confirms his power of ownership; – a report of charge police authority that confirms fact of theft/misappropriation of vehicle; – a receipt of payment of storage charges. All documents except the last should be translated into Ukrainian language and attested by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine or Ukrainian Embassy in the foreign country.
- Are there any time limits associated with recovery of the vehicle? (i.e. after a certain period of time the vehicle becomes the property of the state or police, etc.)?
- If the owner of the vehicle is not found during a year from the moment of vehicle discovery, it is to be announced a State property on the ground of a court decision;
- According to the Civil Code of Ukraine there are three years of claim prescription for legal owner to apply to a court with claim concerning the restitution his property. The term starts from the moment of informing of legal owner about discovery of his vehicle.
- Please give details of relevant legislation
According to the articles 321, 353, 354 of Civil Code of Ukraine right of property is unbreakable. It can be cancelled in special reasons on ground of court decision.
According to the article 388 of Ukrainian Civil Code (“Right of owner to demand the property from possession of a getter in a good faith”):
If property was received as a result of paid-agreement from person, who was not authorized to alienate it and this was not known to getter and he was not able to know about it (a getter in a good faith), than the legal owner has right to demand the property from possession of the getter in such cases:
the property was lost by the legal owner or by person who was authorized to possess it;
the property was stolen from legal owner or from person who was authorized to possess it;
the property was alienated from possession of legal owner or authorized holder without their will in another way.
The property cannot be demanded from a getter in good faith in the case, when it was obtained in order of court decision execution.
If the property was received in non-paid way from person, who was not authorized to alienate it, the legal owner has a right to demand it in any case.
- If the law in your country precludes the restitution of a stolen vehicle to its original owner, please give the reasons why.
A person who has acquired and possessed the stolen vehicle in good faith is entitled to keep and use it until a court has taken the decision concerning the cancellation of power of ownership on vehicle. At the same time the owner in a good faith has no power to alienate such vehicle from his possession during a year since the stolen vehicle has been discovered and procedure of alienate prohibition was fulfilled. - Does your country have any bilateral treaties, conventions, or agreements with other countries dealing with the recovery of stolen property? If so, please describe how they operate and give details of the countries concerned.
Ukraine has not signed any convention or agreement dealing specifically with the recovery of stolen property. At the same time the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters (20 April 1959, Strasbourg), Convention on the International Validity of Criminal Judgments (09 June 2000, The Hague) and Convention on Legal Assistance and Legal Relations in Civil, Family and Criminal matters, concluded between CIS countries (22 January 1993, Minsk) were signed by Ukraine. Furthermore bilateral treaties of legal assistance have been concluded with China, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Georgia, Moldova, Mongolia, Uzbekistan, USA, Canada, Hungary, Finland, Cyprus, Brazil, Vietnam, Greece, Egypt, India, Iran, Cuba, Panama and Algeria. - Reference point, for assistance in case of difficulties:
Contact officer: Mr. Vitaliy BLINOV
Special senior inspector of NCB Kyiv
Tel. +38044 2561877
Fax: +38044 2262057.
Last update: February 2008