More than 200,000 car accidents occur in Florida each year. Sections 316.065-6 of the Florida Statutes require drivers involved in a crash to immediately contact local law enforcement if the crash results in or includes:
- Any injury or death to a person
- Property damage of at least $500
- A vehicle being deemed inoperable and needing to be towed
- Intoxication of any driver
- A commercial motor vehicle being involved
- A driver leaving the scene of the accident (hit and run)
While you may be tempted not to call the police for a fender bender, I highly recommend you do so, because you may not be able to judge at the time whether the accident fits into any of the above requirements. Injuries sometimes develop a few hours or days after the accident, and with the cost of repairs these days, it is likely that fixing your car will top $500. Additionally, a police officer would be in the position to determine if the other driver was driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
If the other driver refuses to wait for the officer, take pictures of the car and license plate before he or she drives away. That may be considered a hit and run, which incurs serious penalties.
What’s in a police report?
When a police officer comes to the scene of an accident, he or she will collect very valuable information that could help you in the event of a lawsuit. A police report would include:
- The date, time, and location of the crash
- A description of the vehicles involved
- The names and addresses of the parties involved, including all drivers and passengers, and the identification of the vehicle in which each was a driver or a passenger
- The names and addresses of witnesses
- The name, badge number, and law enforcement agency of the officer investigating the crash
- The names of the insurance companies for the vehicles involved in the crash
Other pieces of information that may be on a police report include statements from the drivers and witnesses; a diagram of the accident, which could indicate vehicle movement, pedestrian action, vehicle defects, and other factors; photographs of the accident scene and vicinity; and a record of any citations or tickets the police officer issued at the scene.
Who can access a police report?
Since police reports contain a good deal of personal information, they are not available to everyone – at least, not for the first 60 days. Those involved in the accident, their legal representatives, their insurance companies, law enforcement and government agencies, and victim services programs are able to access police reports that include your personal information, but only for furtherance of their duties.
How does the police report help you?
The police report is invaluable when dealing with insurance companies or when filing a personal injury lawsuit. Though an accident report is treated as a third-party witness in court, it does hold considerable weight, because it includes information closest to the event, recorded by a presumably-nonbiased individual. Eyewitness statements, photographs, citations at the scene, and other critical information on the police report can help strengthen your personal injury case.
A police report is particularly helpful when dealing with insurance companies. It can help them process your claim faster, and it is a powerful tool to bring to the table when we sit down to argue for a fair settlement for your pain and suffering.
What if you’re partly at fault?
If you’ve been injured in a car accident, even if you believe you are at least partially at fault, you may still be entitled to compensation for your injuries. Florida follows the “modified comparative negligence” system, which means that, in a lawsuit, fault is distributed between parties. You must be 50% or less at fault for the accident in order to recover your damages. Your damages will be reduced by your allotted percentage of negligence. For instance, if the judge or jury determines that you were 30% at fault for the accident, you could still be entitled to 70% of a court award for your injuries caused by someone else’s negligence.The police report could be very helpful in demonstrating the level of fault of the other driver in order to bolster your case.
As a Florida personal injury lawyer, I am committed to helping Florida residents throughout the state receive just and fair compensation to help them cope with the injuries they have sustained through someone else’s negligence. Contact me at (954) 448-7288, 24/7 for a free consultation to see how I can help you.