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Q894: What are the driver's responsibilities when involved in an accident?

Answer

If, as a driver, your vehicle is involved in a road-traffic accident/collision on a road or public place and one or more of the following occurs:

  • a person, other than yourself, is injured,
  • damage is caused to another vehicle or to someone else's property - including street lamps, signs, bollards etc.
  • an animal, other than one in your own vehicle/trailer, has been killed or injured (animal means any horse, cattle, ass, mule, sheep, pig, goat or dog).

YOU MUST:

  • stop (whether it's your fault or not), AND
  • give your name and address, the vehicle owner's name and address and your vehicle's registration number to anyone with reasonable grounds for asking for those details.

If you don't give your name and address, you must report the accident at a police station or to a police constable as soon as you can, and in any case within 24 hours (this does not mean you have 24 hours in which to report the accident). If you fail to stop, fail to give your and the owner's name and address or the vehicle's details or fail to report the accident, you commit an offence/s.

 

If another person is injured, in addition to the above, YOU MUST:

  • Produce your certificate of insurance to a constable or anyone else having reasonable grounds to see it.

If you don't, you must report the accident at a police station or to a constable as soon as you can and in any case within 24 hours (this does not mean you have 24 hours in which to report the accident) and produce your certificate of insurance. However, if you don't have your certificate with you when you report the accident to the police, you can take it, within seven days of the accident, to the police station you nominate when you report the incident.

 

Points to note:

  • Reporting – if you are under a legal responsibility to tell the police about an accident you cannot do this by telephone, you can only report an accident at a police station or to a police officer in person.
  • Driving – you're legally obliged to comply with these requirements not only when you are directly involved in an accident, but also if your vehicle's 'presence' was a factor in an accident. You don't even have to have been driving the vehicle at the time of the accident e.g. you park your car and run to post a letter, your car runs downhill and collides with another.
  • The above provisions make no reference to blame. Therefore, a driver must comply with them even if they are not at fault for the accident.
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Answer

The existence of CCTV material should always be considered as a reasonable line of enquiry in a police investigation and investigators will usually view / review any CCTV that they are aware of before making a decision as to whether the footage is relevant to the investigation.

If you are aware of the presence of a CCTV camera at a location where a crime / vehicle collision took place, we would suggest you make the police aware of this when you report an incident / collision.

Please also see the Government website in Related Information regarding requesting CCTV footage of yourself.

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Answer

Not all collisions require a police officer to complete a collision report.

In some instances a collision report will not be released until the police file has been finalised.

If you are a solicitor or an insurance agent, you can apply on behalf of your client for a copy of any existing collision reports the police have.

People can also apply for collision reports or request details of third parties involved in a collision if they are representing themselves in civil proceedings.

Information on how to make a request and details regarding costs can be found on local police force websites. See the link in Related Information for force contact details.

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Answer

Unfortunately, a cat does not fall within the remit of the Road Traffic Act and therefore you do not need to report the incident to the police as long as there are no other factors involved, for example:

• Damage to another vehicle
• Injury to another person
• Injury to animals including cattle, mules, sheep, pigs, goat, dogs or horses
• Damage to other property forming parts of land / adjacent to land on road in question

It may be advisable, if possible, to make a few enquiries to find the owner of the cat so that they can be informed of the situation. If you cannot find the owner of the cat, you could take it to the nearest vets as most cats are now microchipped - the vet can scan the cat and contact the owner. Alternatively, you can contact your local council in order for them to clear away the remains.

See the website in Related Information to find your local authority.

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Answer

If both parties stopped at the scene and exchanged names and addresses, then there is no legal requirement to report the accident to the police. Road traffic law has been complied with and the police will not take a report.

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Read the information in Q894 which explains what a driver must do if they are involved in an accident. Note that the provisions make no reference to blame. Therefore, a driver must comply with them even if they are not at fault for the accident.

 

You must comply with the provisions in Q894 or you may face prosecution. Even if you were not at the wheel of your vehicle at the time, you may still be deemed to be the driver in legal terms. If you are in any doubt about what to do, we would suggest you report the matter to your local police, in accordance with the above provisions and let them make the decision.

 

If you managed to make a note of the registration of the offending vehicle the police will make enquiries to trace and speak to the driver. The process of tracing and speaking to the driver of the other vehicle can take some time.

 

If you did not manage to note down the registration of the vehicle then you can still report the accident to the police but unfortunately there are no further enquiries that can be made. However, if the vehicle had an identifying mark on it, a company logo for example, then it may be that the vehicle driver can be traced.


The police will aim to prosecute in most cases where there is sufficient evidence to secure a conviction but each case is judged on its own merits. However, please be aware that some police forces may not take action in relation to very minor damage or accidents on supermarket car parks etc. In such circumstances it will be a matter for your insurance company to resolve the matter.

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Question

Q894: What are the driver's responsibilities when involved in an accident?

Answer

If, as a driver, your vehicle is involved in a road-traffic accident/collision on a road or public place and one or more of the following occurs:

  • a person, other than yourself, is injured,
  • damage is caused to another vehicle or to someone else's property - including street lamps, signs, bollards etc.
  • an animal, other than one in your own vehicle/trailer, has been killed or injured (animal means any horse, cattle, ass, mule, sheep, pig, goat or dog).

YOU MUST:

  • stop (whether it's your fault or not), AND
  • give your name and address, the vehicle owner's name and address and your vehicle's registration number to anyone with reasonable grounds for asking for those details.

If you don't give your name and address, you must report the accident at a police station or to a police constable as soon as you can, and in any case within 24 hours (this does not mean you have 24 hours in which to report the accident). If you fail to stop, fail to give your and the owner's name and address or the vehicle's details or fail to report the accident, you commit an offence/s.

 

If another person is injured, in addition to the above, YOU MUST:

  • Produce your certificate of insurance to a constable or anyone else having reasonable grounds to see it.

If you don't, you must report the accident at a police station or to a constable as soon as you can and in any case within 24 hours (this does not mean you have 24 hours in which to report the accident) and produce your certificate of insurance. However, if you don't have your certificate with you when you report the accident to the police, you can take it, within seven days of the accident, to the police station you nominate when you report the incident.

 

Points to note:

  • Reporting – if you are under a legal responsibility to tell the police about an accident you cannot do this by telephone, you can only report an accident at a police station or to a police officer in person.
  • Driving – you're legally obliged to comply with these requirements not only when you are directly involved in an accident, but also if your vehicle's 'presence' was a factor in an accident. You don't even have to have been driving the vehicle at the time of the accident e.g. you park your car and run to post a letter, your car runs downhill and collides with another.
  • The above provisions make no reference to blame. Therefore, a driver must comply with them even if they are not at fault for the accident.
 
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