Car Accident Reports
Car accident reports are essential to protect your rights if you are involved in a collision.
What Are Car Accident Reports?
When law enforcement professionals are dispatched to the scene of a vehicle accident, one of their most important responsibilities is to complete a car accident report form. This document provides details about the facts of the accident. It is written by the police officer, based on statements provided by individuals on the scene.
Upon arriving at the scene of an accident, one of the things police officers must do is find out what happened. They do so by speaking with the parties involved in the crash, as well as any witnesses who are available. This information forms the basis of the accident report, which will be filed with the proper authorities, typically the Department of Motor Vehicles, in the jurisdiction where the collision occurred.
The information provided by the parties present when the accident occurred, along with data gathered by the law enforcement officers who investigate the incident, is used to determine which driver was at fault in the collision.
Information Included on Vehicle Accident Reports
Each state uses its own form to document vehicle collisions, so the actual information required may vary depending on where a particular vehicle accident occurs. Typically, the forms used to file these types of reports include the following information:
- Location of the accident
- Identity and contact information for drivers and passengers involved
- Details about drivers' motor vehicle licensure
- Names and contact information of witnesses to the accident
- Detailed information on all vehicles involved in the collision
- Make
- Model
- Year
- Vehicle identification number
- Registration number
- Description of what occurred
- Explanation of conditions at the time of the crash
- Diagram of the accident scene
- Notations of any injuries resulting from the accident
- Documentation of property damage related to the crash
Getting a Copy of the Accident Report
If you are involved in a motor vehicle crash, you will need to obtain a copy of the final accident report. At the time of the accident, the police officers who respond will give each party involved in the crash a case number and provide information about how to obtain a copy of the report. It generally takes up to five business days for the official report to be ready. Depending on where you live, you may be able to request that a copy be mailed to you, or you may have to go to your local Department of Motor Vehicle Office to get a copy of the document. There is usually a nominal fee for getting a copy of the report. If you are making an insurance claim, you will need to provide a copy of the report to your automobile insurance provider.
Why Are Accident Reports Necessary?
Car accident reports are essential any time a collision occurs, no matter how minor or serious the incident may be. They provide an important protection for the rights of all parties involved in an accident, and are necessary for filing insurance claims. If you are involved in an accident - whether or not you are at fault - your insurance company is going to request an accident report before processing the claim.
Many people think that if an accident is minor enough that an insurance claim will not need to be filed, then making a formal report is not necessary. Failing to file a report, however, can be very risky. There is always a chance that a person with whom you are involved in an accident will come back at a later date, asserting that you are to blame for personal injuries or vehicle damage that was not apparent at the time of the collision.
Without a formal report, you do not have a way to prove the condition of the vehicle at the time of the wreck or the circumstances under which the accident occurred. It's much better to have legal documentation for all vehicle collisions, so there is a way to record the incident in a timely manner and avoid the potential of false or exaggerated assertions being made at a later date.
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