If you have been involved in a car accident in California, you may be wondering if you are required to report it to the police. Although it may come as a surprise, you are not always required by law to report the accident unless there is an injury, or if there is more than $1,000 in property damage.
However, if neither of these two factors apply to your situation, it may still be beneficial for you to report your accident. For example, if you have gotten into an accident today, but you feel fine, you may begin to experience pain somewhere in your body in the coming weeks. If you find out that the pain is a result of your car accident after visiting your doctor, you may have no recourse from your insurance company. It could make filing a personal injury claim more difficult if you didn’t file a report.
Filing a report may be optional in some cases, but there are three situations in which you should always call the police and report the accident.
Always Call The Police In These Three Situations:
- Somebody has been injured.
- Somebody has been killed.
- There was more than $1,000 of property damage.
If any of the above factors are true in your case, then you have 10 days to make the report. Use DMV form SR-1 to make the report. This form asks for information regarding the accident, such as names, insurance information, details about the time, place, and nature of the accident, and descriptions of the injuries and / or the property damage. If you are unsure whether or not you need to file this form, it’s best to do it anyway to be on the safe side. Even if you don’t need it now, it may become useful later on.
If any of the three factors above are true and you don’t report the accident within 10 days, then you could end up having to pay huge fines and it can even result in your license being suspended. If you were injured in the accident and don’t make a report within 10 days, your insurance may not cover you, and you may not be eligible to file a personal injury claim.
Contact A Personal Injury Attorney
If you have been involved in a car accident and need help with your claim, do not hesitate to contact The Law Offices of Michael A. Rabban at 818-272-8882.
