Documents You Will Require To Report A Car Accident To Police
When it comes to car insurance rates, no one wants to see them raised. Drivers do their best to avoid not only accidents, but ever having to call an insurance company to make a claim. In many cases, accidents are simply paid out of pocket by those who have them, and no insurance company representative is contacted. This can be because the damage was extremely minor, or because both parties agreed that they would prefer not to go through insurance. In many states, however, it is a requirement to report an accident to police once it exceeds a certain monetary value for one or both parties, and if a client wishes to use their insurance, the company will almost always want to see a police report. In order to report an accident to police, there are a number of car documents that will be required.
The first car document that will be required at a police station is the driver's license. This must be both up to date and free of suspensions or holds, or the driver could find themselves on the hook for multiple traffic tickets and potentially a towed vehicle. As well, the driver must be able to produce a valid insurance card and registration for the vehicle, showing that it is currently insured and registered. If the vehicle is registered to another individual, it is likely their insurance that the vehicle will be covered under. While the police will examine and record the details of all of these documents, this is done only so that both parties have access to the same information - it does not mean that insurance services must be used.
In addition to these car documents, police will also want a statement from both drivers about what happened to cause the accident. In most cases a driver will only have access to their own statement, and will not get to see the statement made by the other driver. As well, drivers must remember to bring either the car that was involved in the accident or a copy of an estimate to repair the vehicle to a police station in order for the police to properly assess the damage. Last but not least, drivers must make sure that they have at least the basic information of the other party, including name, license plate number, and phone number so police can contact them.
While a police report may be a necessity, reporting to the insurance company is not. But while drivers fear increases to their car insurance rates, insurance claims are often the best way to have a car fixed, especially in an accident where the other party was at fault.
