What You Need to Know About a Police Report

Most car accident lawyers will always say to call the police immediately if you are involved in a car accident and make sure you get a copy of the report. Many times, drivers at an accident scene will exchange information (phone number, driver’s license, insurance, etc.), but you need to do more than that.

Call the Police

Contacting the police is very important (especially if you are injured) to make sure that there is an accurate report of what happened – who is at fault, witnesses, and similar details. A police report has very important information, including:

• Pictures of the accident scene
• Witness information
• Statements from both drivers
• Statement from the passengers
• Were people speeding or intoxicated
• Names and insurance info for everybody
• Road condition description

It is very important to have all this information available so that your car accident attorney can do their job when they need to file your injury accident claim.

Common Mistakes in a Police Report

It is a very common question for clients to ask “how to fight a false accident report,” “how to dispute a police report”, or “what if the police report is wrong”? Of course, some mistakes on a police report will be much harder to fix than others, and some information on the accident report is more important.

• 道路状况 – Road conditions from the police accident report are used to recreate the scene. If this information is wrong (or missing), then photo evidence becomes crucial.
• Who was at fault – Typically, the police officer on the scene will determine who was at fault. If the officer writes down the wrong name, it could be very difficult to change this information.
• Inaccurate eyewitness information – This can be a significant problem because if the police report has the wrong name or contact information for the witnesses, it will be hard to correct that after the fact.  There is a chance you could reach the witnesses via social media, but without a name, it’s not good.
• Photos missing or destroyed – Pictures and or video always play a vital role when dealing with a car accident scene. Sometimes photos are lost, or maybe the photos are just of really bad quality.

How to Get a Copy of the Police Accident Report

Call the phone number listed on the business card of the officer who responded to your accident and compiled the report. If you don’t have a business card, you can call the police station and ask for that officer. If you get hold of the officer, explain to them who you are and give them some information about the crash to refresh their memory.

Sometimes, the officer won’t be able to help you, and you’ll have to speak to a receptionist or even call your local courthouse and speak to a clerk. After you discover which department has your car accident police report, then you can go get it in person if need be (sometimes you need to pay a small fee).

Sometimes, the DMV office might have the police report. The DMV might provide you with the police report after it’s been submitted to them by the responding officer.

Another good option is to get a copy of the police accident report from your insurance company. You can also contact the insurance company for the defendant and ask if they can mail it to you. It’s very important to your insurance claim and your injury claim that your car accident lawyer will be handling.

Will the Police Report Help Your Injury Claim?

Although a police report by itself will probably not be admissible in civil court, the report does go a long way in gaining leverage while negotiating an injury accident dispute. A police report can come in very handy during an informal settlement talk with an insurance carrier, when your car accident lawyer can then use the facts from the police report to gain an edge in your case.

Maybe the circumstances of the crash, like the time of day, the date, the location, or the weather. Initial thoughts on who is at fault. After a car accident, the police report might contain the responding officer’s observations and opinion as to which driver is primarily at fault, who violated the state’s vehicle code, etc.

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