Posted On May 10, 2016 Personal Injury
When an accident seems minor, you might be tempted not to report it.
After all, you don’t want to make a big deal out of nothing. The person who caused the crash might try to persuade you that you don’t need to involve the police so that he or she can avoid getting a ticket for violating traffic laws. You don’t want to be held up at the accident scene waiting for the police, and you can just get the other driver’s insurance information – right?
In the immediate aftermath of a crash that doesn’t cause life-threatening injuries, this logic may seem to make perfect sense. But when you fail to report an accident, you’re leaving yourself open to significant consequences.
If you notice pain or discomfort in the days that follow – a common situation – or if your car is more badly damaged than you initially realized, you’ll wish that you had reported the accident when it happened.
In New Jersey and Pennsylvania, reporting a car accident promptly isn’t just a smart thing to do – it’s the law. And breaking that law can cost you your driving privileges.
New Jersey state laws require drivers to submit a written accident report to the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) within 10 days if that collision resulted in any of the following:
Even a low-impact crash can cause some serious, and long-term, injuries that you might not know about until later. And even relatively minor cosmetic vehicle damage can still cost more than $500. That’s one reason why our New Jersey car accident lawyers encourage drivers to report every car accident in New Jersey to the police when it happens.
If you don’t call the police at the time of your accident and you fail to file a written accident report after the fact, you could wind up losing not just your driver’s license, but also your vehicle registration privileges. This means not only can’t you drive yourself to work, school, or any of the other places you need to go, but you can’t even legally have someone else drive your car.
When it comes to reporting accidents, Pennsylvania’s state laws are similar to New Jersey’s. Drivers are required to “immediately by the quickest means of communication give notice to the nearest office of a duly authorized police department” if the accident causes an injury, a death, or enough damage that the vehicle must be towed from the scene.
If the police come to the scene of the accident, they will usually prepare a crash report. Otherwise, the driver has five days to submit their own written report.
Fail to report a Pennsylvania collision, and you could lose your driver’s license.
Reporting a collision is important because it protects you in ways that, at the time of the crash, you’re probably not even thinking about yet.
For one thing, you certainly want to make it known that you stopped at the scene of the accident and provided any aid necessary – both of which are actions the law requires you to take, even if you’re not the one at fault for the crash. If the other driver decides to file a police report later, you don’t want to be accused of leaving the scene. A hit-and-run is a serious crime with serious penalties.
You’ll also want to document the accident – and make sure that what’s documented is accurate. If you later learn that the property damage was more severe than you thought or realize that the pain you’re feeling isn’t just a little temporary soreness, you’ll need to go through your or the other driver’s auto insurance coverage – and the insurer will want to see the crash report.
If there’s no proof that the accident happened at all, don’t expect your or the other driver’s insurance company to shell out the money to pay for your medical treatment, car repairs, or other damages. Insurers are infamous for trying to get out of paying claims – and by not documenting the accident, you’re making their job even easier.
Don’t count on the other driver just paying you cash so you can avoid involving the insurers altogether. You’d be surprised how many accident victims we talk to who thought they could trust the promise of the at-fault driver – only to find that the driver gave them false contact information, or suddenly became unreachable, or even acted hostile when it was time to make good on that promise. Involving the insurance companies can certainly be a hassle, but it’s still a better choice than just hoping the other driver will step up and do the right thing.
Wondering what you should do when reporting a car accident? These quick tips can help.
If in doubt, always report a collision to the police. Failing to report a crash is a mistake that you might end up regretting.
