Whether you’ve been involved in a scary car wreck on the highway or a fender bender in a Publix parking lot, having an accident report filed is crucial.

For some smaller accidents (minimal property damage and minimal injuries) calling a police officer may not be necessary and the drivers involved can opt to file a short form crash report online. A short form accident offers a quick glance of the accident and the drivers involved.

For serious vehicle accidents, a police officer will write a long form traffic accident report. These can be 3-5 pages and includes the information of all drivers and vehicles involved, a narrative (a short description of how the accident happened), and a diagram of the accident.

What to Look for on Your Florida Accident Report

Traffic accident reports are crucial because the information it contains may help support your injury claim. Accident reports will tell you…

• “Contributing causes” (A.K.A. how the police officer believes the crash occurred)
• If a driver was given a ticket (Keep in mind, a drier still has a case even if he or she was issued a ticket)
• A rough estimate of what the police officer thinks the damage is
• Whether the owner of the vehicle was or was not the driver (this means another claim could be involved)
• Names and information of witnesses to the accident
• If a driver was driving a company vehicle (once again, more claims – such as a workers’ compensation claim – could be involved)
• Names and information of all drivers involved
• Who was hurt in the accident
• Where the accident happened

When Should You File an Accident Report?

It can be impossible to recover compensation from your insurance policy without an accident report. This can leave you paying thousands out of pocket.

Whether you’ve been in a car wreck or a fender bender, I suggest you file a report even if you do not think you suffered any injuries in the crash, simply to have a record that it occurred. In many cases, injuries from an accident take days to show symptoms. Filing an accident report with the police can help tie your injuries to the accident.