What to do immediately in a car accident?
While driving out and about, there are plenty of surprises that can occur and drivers ought to be vigilant at all times in case of such emergency. Regardless, accidents can still happen no matter how safe of a driver you are. In the unfortunate event where an accident occurs between you and another party, it is natural that you are at a loss no idea what to do as there seems to be so much to take note of. Besides staying calm, here are the procedures that you can reference when you are involved in an accident.
Stopping your vehicle and accessing any injury.
When an accident occurs, stop your vehicle immediately and make sure that you and your passengers, if any, are alright. If possible, proceed to alight from your vehicle and check on the other party while ensuring your safety on the roads at all times. If there is any injury, call for an ambulance (995). Do not move the injured or the vehicles while waiting for the ambulance to arrive. In the event where there is no injury, try not to move your vehicle unless severely obstructing traffic until you have gathered photos for evidence.
While most of you would know that you will have to inform the police when the accident involves the injured, pedestrians, cyclists or fatalities. You will also be required to notify them if it involves a foreign vehicle, government property (traffic light, road barriers etc) and also hit-and-run cases.
Exchange driver particulars.
Secondly, you will want to exchange driver’s particular with the other party involved. In the event of a chain collision involving multiple vehicles, obtain the particulars of the driver directly infront and behind of you will suffice. Some of the important details to exchange include,
- Driver’s Full Name
- NRIC or FIN (e.g 321A)
- Car Plate Number
- Contact Number
- Insurer Details
While it is not entirely required with exception of the car plate for obvious reasons and would have been already recorded if you have a car dashcam if the other driver refuses to exchange any information. These details are collected and will be presented to your insurance company and can help speed up the process for the filing and submission of claims.
Gathering evidence by taking photos.
Once the abovementioned has been completed, proceed to take photographs of the accident site as since it may be used to determine the liability of parties in the event of a dispute which emphasises the point of not moving any of the vehicles unless required. In the event where the accident is holding back traffic, it would be wise to take photographs of the accident first before proceeding to shift the vehicles to a more appropriate position to exchange driver’s particulars. The photos that you should take are the following.
- Photograph of the entire accident scene. (Ensure that the photo taken is clear and contains the relevant information such as the vehicles involved, road markings and other details which are relevant to the accident such as debris, skid marks and oil patches)
- Photograph of the damages to both vehicles. (If involved in a multi-vehicle collision you only need to take vehicles directly in front and behind of you.)
When photographing, always try to include the vehicle plate of the vehicles whenever possible.
Additional tips:
You should also remember or take note of the location of the accident, with respect to the date and time as well as the road conditions when the accident occurred.
With most cars come equipped with a dashcam, prepare and retrieve the dash camera’s video recording of when the accident occurred to submit to your insurer as these videos will provide a better understanding of how the accident occurred.
Conclusion
With all these completed, you can now leave the accident scene. You may choose to tow the vehicle or drive it yourself if it is in drivable condition. We recommend to always tow the vehicle if you are unsure about its road worthiness and you may wish to have it repaired at an approved workshop by your insurance for a smoother repair and claims experience. While we hope that all our readers will never get into an accident, in the unfortunate event that it occurs, we hope that this simple guide will help you in the precedence of an accident.