What to do in the event of a car accident
A road accident is a stressful moment, and unfortunately can happen to anyone. The above infographic’s aim is to prepare you for when you may face a difficult situation like a road accident. Knowing upfront what to do and what not to do can save you from unnecessary hardship, as well as potential mistakes that can result in the denial of a car insurance claim.
Your first action should always be to check if anyone is hurt, including yourself. If someone is heavily injured, call an ambulance immediately, or ask someone nearby to do so if you are unable to. You should always have a first aid kit placed in your car, and be able to give first aid to an injured person.
The question of whether to move or not to move the car depends on whether there were people injured in the accident. If death or major injuries occur because of the accident, you should not move your car or another driver’s car until the police arrive and give you permission. However, in case of a collision or an accident where no-one was hurt, you can move your car to the safe place like the side of the road, or give clear warning signal to other drivers - for example by staging an emergency warning triangle behind your car and flashing your hazard lights
What to say to the police
Remember that the most important thing after a car accident is to stay calm. Do not argue with the other driver, and do not admit fault until the police investigation is over, as it may result in insurance claim rejection. When police arrive, describe thoroughly and truthfully what has happened, and make sure to obtain a copy of the report. Police officers know that both drivers will need a copy of their report for insurance purposes.
Post-accident checklist
To make things even easier, we have prepared a downloadable, and printable version of a driver’s post-accident checklist. This checklist comes in a structure of a form which lists the mentioned steps above in an easy list, together with the space to collect all important information from other drivers and witnesses. Go ahead and download the checklist with THIS link.
While we hope you never have to use this car accident checklist, we recommend that you download it and keep it in your car, together with your insurance and vehicle documents.
More guides and useful information
For more detailed information about post-accident procedures, please refer to our website guide called What To Do After An Accident or our Claims Guidelines section, where you can find all the answers related to making an accident claim.
Quite often the relationships that insurance brokers, such as brokers at Kwiksure, have with motor insurance companies can speed up the claims process, which can last up to 9 months. We aim to make the claims process as easy as possible for you, and provide you with regular updates or any car insurance advice you may require.
To find out more about how Kwiksure can make motor insurance simpler and easier for you, contact us by emailing info@kwiksure.com, calling +852 3113 1331, or clicking the chat box on the right hand side.