Car accident victims who think they have minor injuries or don’t see any signs of injuries may decide to just exchange their information and forego calling the police. But, this is usually not a good idea since they may have suffered an injury that is not visible or had delayed symptoms.
After a car accident, you should contact the police, so they can file an accident report and document the accident scene. The official police report will support your insurance claim. If you were hurt in a car accident, you must call a colorado springs car accident lawyer to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation. Your attorney will look for the official police report and use it as evidence that your accident and injury occurred.
Why Call the Police After a Car Accident in Colorado Springs?
Calling the police after a car crash offers the following benefits:
- Resolve disputes. The other driver may dispute that they caused the accident. But, a police report may say otherwise, proving that the driver was at fault for the accident. The content of the report can help strengthen your claim.
- Document the accident scene. An accident report that the police will make preserves significant details about the crash, including the location of the accident, road conditions, any witness statements, details on citations issued for the crash, and other information that can help establish fault in the accident.
- Make credible assessments. The official police assessment that the accident report includes may hold more credibility than informal statements collected from witnesses.
You Cannot Just Trust the Other Driver
If you don’t’ call the police, the other driver can easily wash their hands and assert that they don’t cause the accident. Even if the driver will give you their contact information, you can’t verify its accuracy. If the driver gives you wrong information, how will you find them and hold them accountable? In addition, you cannot get any official record of the accident that can support your claim if the other driver denies responsibility for the crash.
What Happens If You Don’t Report a Car Accident in Colorado?
Colorado law requires that a car accident should be reported if they lead to personal injury or death or lead to property damage. Failure to report will result in a Class 2 misdemeanor traffic offense. You can expect to spend up to 90 days in jail and pay a fine of up to $300. And your offense is a more serious class one misdemeanor offense if you don’t report an accident with injuries involved. If the unreported accident led to fatalities, you could face class three felony charges.
