When the Police Don't Arrive After a Car Crash

You probably expect the police to arrive after an auto accident, but that does not always happen. Unfortunately, the police's failure to visit your accident scene could complicate your accident claim. Below are some reasons the police might not come to your accident scene and what you should do in such a case.

Why the Police Might Not Come

The police usually come to accident scenes to control traffic, help the injured, and collect relevant information. However, they might not come to your accident scene under the following circumstances.

Police Consider the Accident to be "Minor"

When a relatively minor accident occurs (i.e. one without significant property damage or emergent injuries) police may elect not to come to the scene. For example, the police might not come to the scene of a low impact accident without any reported injuries.

Note, however, that some accidents look relatively minor, but trigger hidden or delayed injuries. For example, an accident might cause internal injuries that only appear after days or weeks. Thus, you should get a medical checkup even if an accident looks minor.

The Police Have Prioritized Other Issues

The police might not come to your accident scene if they have more demanding tasks than they need to handle. The police typically prioritize serious cases if they are overwhelmed with calls. Say a freak storm hits an area and blocks some roads, uproots some trees, and causes multiple accidents. In such a case, the police might prioritize their personnel to cases deemed more serious than yours.

The Accident Scene Is Private Property

Some police officers are reluctant to visit accident scenes on private properties. For example, the police might not come if the accident occurs in a private parking lot. The reluctance is understandable since the police might not have jurisdiction to rule on traffic issues on private properties.

What to Do

It does not mean that you don't have a case Just because the police do not respond to your accident. If you are involved in an accident and the police do not respond, below are some steps to take.

File a Police Report

In some cases, the police might not arrive at an accident scene right away, but are instead delayed. However, the police might also completely fail to come. In the latter case, go to the nearest police station and report the accident. The police will give you a form to fill out for your report. Don't embellish your description of the accident and give unnecessary information — stick to the important facts. 

Get Medical Care

Medical care is necessary for all accidents. For one, you want health care providers to diagnose and treat your injuries especially those that are not immediately apparent. Secondly, medical care generates medical bills. Those bills that are related to your accident should be paid by your Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage, if applicable. This can be important later on in a lawsuit for damages. 

Preserve Relevant Information

You should always preserve available evidence after an accident. The preservation is even more crucial if the police don't come to the accident scene. In normal cases, you may rely on the police report to get some evidence, but that won't be the case if the police don't come in the first place.

Below are some tips for preserving evidence:

• Get the names and contacts of everyone at the accident scene. Examples include the drivers, passengers, and bystanders who may provide eyewitness testimony.
• Take photographs or record videos of the accident scene, your injuries, and damages to your vehicle and other property.
• Take notes on the major facts of the accident, such as the location, time, and a description of the accident.
• Preserve physical evidence, such as damaged physical property.

Hopefully, your injuries will be minor enough to allow you to do the above before the evidence disappears. If you need urgent medical care, get it first before taking further action.

Jarve Kaplan Granato Starr can help pursue your compensation whether or not the police came to the accident scene. Contact us for a consultation and benefit from our decades of personal injury experience.