Your car could be spying on you. Especially if it's a rental car. Did you know that most (meaning over 50%) cars have black boxes in them? Sure, you've been reading about that for a while, right?

Of course, it makes some kind of sense on rental cars, which some people tend to abuse. (Not you, of course, never! But other people do, right?)

But what about when the black box is on your own car? Who owns that black box? Who has the right to it, in case of an accident?

Do you? Does your insurance company? Does law enforcement? What about the manufacturer?

Well, this is an argument that's being played out in the courts and state legislatures these days.

The big issue is that most people don't realize their cars have these tattletales - or what the black boxes and chips do. Essentially, they store a few seconds of information about the car's speed, seat-belt use and assorted other data right before an accident. Even though you don't know it's in your car, it can potentially be used against you in a court of law. You may want to be checking to how your state views these devices. You may want to speak up. Lulu and I have already agreed about them. We both think they're a great idea - on someone else's car. Not ours!