Witness to car accident - how to contact owner?

February 5, 2020 8:15 AM

I've got video of a traffic accident that occurred and the license plate number of one of the participants, but didn't stop to get contact info - what next?

Accident occurred in DC - one of the participants had a MD plate. I didn't get the other car's plate.

I have a dash cam that records video in 5 minute intervals - as I was stopped at an intersection I saw a (minor) fender bender occur with crossing traffic. The camera captured the accident and they pulled over further down the street but I wasn't able to stop to get contact information because of heavy traffic flow. - I did snap a license plate of one of the participants.

I think the right thing to do is to get the video to them if it's of any use, but beyond having the license plate number, I'm not sure what to do next. Thoughts?

posted by Karaage to Law & Government (4 answers total)

I wouldn't get involved, honestly. It may end up being a major headache for you in ways that you can't really foresee.

I was a witness to a car accident and thought to be a good Samaritan, gave my testimony to the police, and was then subpoenaed to appear in court by the attorney of the at-fault party. I didn't know this was possible but with civil cases apparently they can do that. This was when I was already living in another state a year later, causing me to miss work and spend money on travel, so it was a huge headache for which I received no compensation for. Plus the stress of having to remember under oath what happened a year prior was not worth whatever karma points I earned with the universe.
posted by Young Kullervo at 8:41 AM on February 5, 2020

If it were me I would probably contact the police department. If it's a bad enough accident that they would care about video footage, they've probably filed an accident report with the police.
posted by mekily at 8:42 AM on February 5, 2020 [5 favorites]

I agree - contact the police on a non-emergency line. My guess is that there is no accident report because it was a minor deal; if so, you've done your duty and I would forget about it. But if there was a report/investigation of some kind then perhaps they will say they want the video, which seems unlikely but you can assure yourself.
posted by Mid at 10:27 AM on February 5, 2020

Definitely contact the police department. Late on a weekday morning to the non-emergency line is going to be the best time to get through and they'll guide you to the right person who can do a license plate search and contact the owner.
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 5:40 PM on February 5, 2020 [1 favorite]