ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Who pays to repair damaged police cars?

Last week, several Rochester Police cars were seriously damaged in crashes, including two hit by alleged drunk drivers. Also, on Wednesday morning, RPD said a teen stole a car and crashed it on Lake Avenue.

Mark asks: “It seems you read about damaged police cars caused by criminals during pursuits in the city. Who pays for this damage? The criminals?”

RPD Captain Greg Bello says just like any crash, it depends who is at fault.

“If the other driver is at fault, the operator of the other vehicle is at fault, the city law department files a claim against the other person’s insurance company,” he said.

That’s if the other person is at fault, but what if the officer is at fault?

“If the RPD officer or the city employee is at fault, rather than having our own insurance company, the city is self-insured, then the city has a certain budget set aside, and then the City of Rochester pays for the repairs to the vehicle,” Bello said.

No major injuries were reported over the weekend. All four officers are out of the hospital. They’re recovering at home.

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