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Even in countries or cities with the best road safety records,
there are still many accidents every day. What should you do if you
are involved in an accident?
There are certain steps you should follow when your car has been
involved in an accident, regardless of who may have been at fault.
Remember that it is an offence to either fail to stop at the scene
of an accident or to fail to report an accident which you have been
involved in.
Most importantly and without doubt the first thing you should think
about is whether anyone may have been injured, including yourself.
If you or any of your passengers haven’t been injured, you must get
everyone out of the car and check on the people in the other car(s)
involved. If anyone looks as though they are hurt, unless they are
in immediate danger from oncoming traffic, do not move them! Call
the emergency services and let them deal with it, as moving someone
may cause them more damage. When you call the emergency services
remember to give as much detail as possible, including the location
of the crash, the number of people involved, vehicles involved and
try to describe any injuries you can see. This will help them get
to you as quickly as they possibly can. You must also let them know
if the crash site is considered a hazard to any other drivers and
the police will need to close the road.
If the crash is minor, there are no injuries, or it wasn’t caused
by another vehicle, but was the fault of yourself driving into
something then it is still a legal requirement to report it to the
police within 24 hours of the crash. Failure to do so would result
in two things:
1.You will be charged a fine of up to 5,000 and be given five to
ten points on your license.
2.Your insurance company may prevent you from making a claim.
It is easy to become flustered when you have been involved in a
crash, but it is important to remain level headed so that you can
remember the details clearly. It is a good idea to keep a pen,
paper, camera, first aid kit, mobile phone, warning triangle in
your car so that you are always prepared if you are involved in a
crash. At this point try not to get into any heated arguements
about who was to blame. The last thing you need is to cause any
more trouble and even if the other driver is feeling argumentative
try not to be drawn in.You need to exchange personal details with
the other driver but you should not discuss details of the motor
accident with anyone other than the police or your car insurance
company.
Note down details such as any registration numbers, names,
addresses, telephone numbers, vehicle colour, make and model,time
and date of the crash and names of any witnesses. You should also
make a note of any injuries sustained as well as if you noticed
anything unusual for instance if you think the other driver may
have been using their phone whilst driving, they may be under the
influence of alcohol or even if the weather conditions were
particularly bad. Most people have a mobile phone with a camera
these days so if appropriate you should take photos of any damage
to the vehicles involved. If you don’t have a camera, jot down a
picture of how you saw the accident happen on a bit of paper. This
will help you remember important details that you may forget when
you leave the crash scene. The more details you have the easier it
will be to make a claim on your insurance.
Once you have exchanged all necessary details with any of the other
drivers involved, remember to take some time to calm down before
driving off, as the last thing you need is to cause another
accident because you are so shaken up you are unable to drive
responsibly.
You must inform your car insurance company about the accident as
soon as possible.
If you decide to continue with your claim, your insurance company
will talk you through the steps of what needs to be done next. If
other people were involved in the accident, your insurance company
will need to contact the insurance companies of the other drivers
and they will resolve the claims based on the evidence you have
given them.
Obviously, the best thing is to try and avoid a crash in the first
place. Remember never to drive when you are tired as this can
affect your level of concentration.
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