The following is a guest post by The Pittman Firm:
During a conference in my Panama City, Florida, office, an auto accident client asked if he did the right thing when he moved his car out of the road after a wreck. His car, which was still drivable, was partially blocking traffic on Highway 98 at Panama City Beach. He decided to move it when some of the other drivers, rubbernecking as they drove through the wreck scene, were nearly involved in collisions. I assured him that he had done the right thing.
Most people think they have to leave their vehicles exactly where they come to rest until the police arrive. They fear moving it, because they might be tampering with evidence showing who was at fault. That may be correct, but for the safety of the drivers involved and other people who are trying to get through the area, Florida law requires a driver of a disabled vehicle to make every reasonable effort to move the vehicle or have it removed if two conditions are met:
- the vehicle is driveable
- there are no injuries
If both conditions are met, neither the police nor an insurance company will assess a penalty for moving the vehicle.
Studies in Florida show some interesting things. Collisions cause more than half of the state’s street and highway congestion. Depending on the type location where a wreck occurs, thirteen to thirty-three percent of crashes are caused by earlier wrecks. Why? Because of the rubbernecking I mentioned a minute ago. Drivers passing through a wreck scene should go through without slowing unnecessarily. If they do, the chance of their being rear ended goes up astronomically.
The studies also show that for every minute spent on the scene by fire and rescue personnel or police, five minutes of traffic congestion results. And injury to those who respond to a wreck is significant, accounting for fifty-nine percent of police casualties in Florida. It’s easy to see why getting a wrecked vehicle out of the way will improve response and clearance times at accident scenes. That in turn will reduce congestion, reduce subsequent collisions, and improve safety conditions for the drivers and responders like police, fire and rescue personnel.
A major part of my practice is devoted to educating people about how to recognize and avoid dangers. I would rather they be safe than to get calls from them after a wreck, so follow these tips after a collision:
- Check for injuries. If someone’s hurt, call 911 immediately, and wait for emergency personnel.
- If there are no injuries, move the vehicles off the road to a safe place.
- Now call 911 to report the wreck. Follow the dispatcher’s instructions.
- Follow law enforcement’s directives when they arrive, and report the wreck to your own insurance company.
- Finally, remember this. Don’t ever, ever talk to the other person’s insurance company without first talking to a lawyer. That insurance company is the absolute enemy.