Car accident question

February 8, 2004 6:27 PM

Car accident question:
If you go report a car accident a day or two after it happened at the police station and it was your fault, can you still get a ticket for following too closely, failure to yield, etc?
posted by jmd82 to law & government (15 comments total)

I'm curious why you would do this. Do you need an accident report for insurance purposes? It would also help to know what city/state it happened in. I'm sure laws vary from place to place. The police's treatment of your report would probably also depend upon your prior record and if you had any existing black marks on your driving record.
posted by contessa at 7:03 PM on February 8, 2004

In California, you can't. I don't know what it is in your state. In CA, the police officer has to be able to testify that a violation occurred, either through personally witnessing a violation or "reviewing" evidence from a red light camera, which would preclude giving tickets after the fact.
posted by calwatch at 7:03 PM on February 8, 2004

In California, you can't. I don't know what it is in your state. In CA, the police officer has to be able to testify that a violation occurred, either through personally witnessing a violation or "reviewing" evidence from a red light camera, which would preclude giving tickets after the fact.

I find that funny, even after a confession with corroborating evidence (i.e. observable damage to the vehicle)?
posted by eastlakestandard at 7:08 PM on February 8, 2004

And in Ontario, you can, since a coworker caused an accident, and after reporting it was ticketed for the driving that caused it. This is a question that can't be answered without knowing more detail.
posted by jacquilynne at 7:15 PM on February 8, 2004

You may get something even better -- arrested for leaving the scene of an accident.
posted by cedar at 7:24 PM on February 8, 2004

Depends on the threshold for reporting. All states allow you to leave the scene of an accident as long as both parties are satisfied with the information exchange.
posted by calwatch at 7:35 PM on February 8, 2004

and the damage level isn't above a certain amount
posted by calwatch at 7:35 PM on February 8, 2004

And no injuries occured..
posted by mbell at 10:06 PM on February 8, 2004

It occured in Athens, GA. Was with a friend and she rear-ended some dude (going around a bend at night and didn't notice the car had stopped to make a left-hand turn). He was cool about it and just exchanged information. Both cars were drivable, with her's taking the brunt of the force with a smashed-in bumper, while his was just a broken tail-light and a scratched up bumper (she's hoping that it just requires touch-up paint, though things never tend to work out that way in accidents). There were no injuries. Mainly, I'm just curious as to the technical legalities behind these kind of things.
posted by jmd82 at 10:13 PM on February 8, 2004

jmd82, in Ontario, Canada, no. But that's only because:

- The officer wasn't at the scene during the accident, so can't prove anything.
- In general, only a criminal charge can be filed for an accident. Criminal charges are things like Drunk Driving, Careless Driving, and Dangerous Driving.

I *know* for *certain* in Ontario you can't be ticketed at an accident for following to closely as long as you aren't dumb enough to directly admit it (remain silent!), and as long as the officer doesn't see the accident.

How do I know that? I fought my last ticket myself (it's very easy in Ontario, and here *ALL* court costs are included in the cost of the ticket, you can't lose, really), which was a following too close/causing an accident ticket. It was quashed at the first appearance with the prosecutor. Partly because it was full of errors (incorrect amounts charged, time was screwed up [that can be amended, though]). Partly because, in the prosecutors words:

"Only a criminal offence ticket can be served for an accident. Following too closely isn't a criminal offence, and the officer's evidence doesn't show you admitted guilt."

Always fight your ticket. FYST might help with that. But maybe not.

BTW: If you report the accident, it will almost FOR SURE end up on your insurance. This is VERY BAD. Period. I have had two VERY minor at-fault accidents totalling $382 in claimed damages (want me to scan the proof?). My insurance has now risen $2000 a year for 5 years. The moral of the story?

LIE THROUGH YOUR TEETH. The other person *ALWAYS* reversed into you. Period.

Second rule: If they threated to call the insurace because they aren't happy about the amount, YOU NEED TO CALL FIRST, otherwise they will think you are lying. Tell them "Ok, I'll give you what you want, let me get the money together". Then just call their insurance company and explain how they were drunk and driving in reverse. It sucks, but that's the way insurance works nowadays. I know, I've been burned.

Oh, and yeah, my lack of remorse is because our insurance company (AVIVA) decided to *LIE* to us about a police report that was supposedly filed, but wasn't (we checked -- they came clean after I phoned them twice telling them I'd talked to everyone at the police department and it didn't exist). Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

Bottom line? PHONE A TRAFFIC LAWYER NOW. It'll be worth EVERY penny. For certain!
posted by shepd at 11:18 PM on February 8, 2004

I don't think they can ticket you without visual evidence, but be prepared to get the riot act from the cops. 3 years ago I reported a single-car accident 4 hours after it happened and got harassed to no end at the police station. The officers immediately suspected that I was DUI at the time of the accident and I was asked to describe the accident several times by several different officers. They even had a little bit of the good cop/bad cop shtick going. I ended up spending about 2 hours in the station just to get an accident report filed.
posted by ttrendel at 12:42 AM on February 9, 2004

Shedp? You are joking, right?

I have had two VERY minor at-fault accidents...The moral of the story?

Umm, take responsibility for your actions? If you hit me and tried to pull that shit you're talking about I'd have you in court so fast your head would spin. Your insurance rate isn't tied to the amount of the damage, it's tied to the fact that you're obviously a bad driver, and frankly, I think they're undercharging you.

Fuckheads like you are the reason I always call the cops if someone hits me, no matter how minor the damage seems at the time.
posted by jalexei at 7:45 AM on February 9, 2004

was cool about it and just exchanged information.
Other than filing an accident report because there was an amount of damage over $500.00 which is the case in most states, why would the police care?
posted by thomcatspike at 10:12 AM on February 9, 2004

I was driving through a school zone in Houston when I was passed by a woman doing about 50 mph. She stopped at a red light and, when I informed her she was speeding, flipped me off. I proceeded to follow her to discuss the matter further.

She drove to a police station and was talking to the desk sergeant when I walked in. She pointed me out and said I was stalking her. I explained what had happened and, when I mentioned her speed, she said, "I was going 35, not 50!" The sergeant asked her to repeat that, confirmed that she was in a school zone, and wrote her a ticket based on my complaint and her confession. (He also read me the riot act about following her, so I didn't get away scot free for my road rage.)
posted by joaquim at 11:03 AM on February 9, 2004

Other than filing an accident report because there was an amount of damage over $500.00 which is the case in most states, why would the police care?

Actually, in Athens, if you're in an accident of any magnitude, its considered a hit and run no matter the amount of damage if you don't report it (but you can legally report it afterwards). I know they can write a ticket on the scene, but I was more interested in day-after effect of writing tickets for accidents. Also, I wonder, if that $500 guideline is just the other car or for both combined since it can be cheaper just to pay out of pocket.

joaquim: I stopped doing that kind of thing in Atlanta when someone purposely hit my dad while driving for doing what you did.
posted by jmd82 at 11:18 AM on February 9, 2004