Being involved in a serious car accident can turn your life upside down. If you or a loved one has been seriously injured by the fault of another driver, the accident report from the crash is one of the most important documents to understand following a car accident. This report can provide valuable information about the details of the accident, including who was involved, what happened, and who was at fault. Crash reports are issued for every accident that left someone injured.

If you find yourself facing a serious injury following a crash that was caused by another driver, our car accident attorneys can help. Since our founding in Maine in 1914, Berman & Simmons has grown into the state's largest personal injury law firm with over $1.5 Billion recovered for our clients.  The Maine car accident attorneys at Berman & Simmons have an unmatched record for verdicts and settlements in car crash cases, and we can help you understand your accident report following a serious crash.

Understanding an Accident Report

An accident report is a document created by law enforcement officials after a car accident. The purpose of the accident report is to provide an official record of the accident, including information about the drivers and passengers involved, identification of the vehicles, and any citations or charges that were issued to the at-fault driver. The report is typically created by a police officer, sheriff, state trooper, or other law enforcement officer who responds to the scene of the crash. In Maine, the accident report is typically prepared on a standard form from the Maine Department of Public Safety known as a "State of Maine Crash Report."

Why an Accident Report is Important

An accident report is an important document that can help establish the facts of the accident and provide valuable evidence for your legal claim following serious injury by an at-fault driver. This information can be critical in determining who was at fault for the accident and in providing evidence for our attorneys to use to pursuing the driver whose negligence caused the crash.

An accident report typically includes a variety of information about the accident, including the date, time, and location of the accident, and any witnesses to the accident. The report may also include GPS coordinates or diagrams of the accident scene. Law enforcement will usually prepare a narrative summary of the accident based on their investigation of the crash. The report also provides details about the accident that may not be immediately apparent, such as the legal speed limit for the road, the presence of any traffic lights or signage, and the makes and models of the vehicles involved.

It is important to note that while an accident report can provide helpful facts, accident reports sometimes get details wrong. That is why it is so important to have an experience attorney in your corner when you or a loved one have been seriously injured in a crash. The greater the injury, the higher the stakes are to pursue a recovery against all parties at fault for the crash.

How to Obtain an Accident Report

Our lawyers handle obtaining the accident reports for our clients. The larger the crash, the more time it may take for law enforcement to prepare the report. For crashes involving deaths or life-threatening injuries, there will often be a formal crash reconstruction, which can delay the issuance of the final accident report (or lead to an amended report being re-issued).

The process for obtaining an accident report varies depending on the state and the law enforcement agency involved. In Maine, most law enforcement agencies submit their completed accident reports to the Maine Crash Reporting Database online, where any member of the public can purchase and download a digital copy of the report once it is available.

How to Read an Accident Report

Reading an accident report can be confusing, especially if you are not familiar with the terminology and format of the report. The official Maine Crash Report form uses a complex system of codes and abbreviations. Here are some of the most important sections of an accident report to review:

• Accident Information: This first page of the report contains basic information about the accident, including the date, time, and location of the accident. This is also where the narrative description of the crash will be, and where the police diagram of the accident scene appears.
• Witness Information: This bottom of the first page lists any witnesses to the accident, including their names and contact information.  Oftentimes, law enforcement may not write down witness information on the report, which is why our attorneys will investigate to determine if anyone also witnessed the crash.
• Vehicle Information: The report will include a separate page for each vehicle involved in the crash,  including the make, model, and license plate number of each vehicle as well as the vehicle's insurance information recorded by the police. The owner and driver of the vehicle will be identified on this page, as well.
• Driver and Passenger Information: This bottom of the vehicle page identifies everyone who was in the vehicle at the time of the crash, including the driver and any passengers.  The report will list the dates of birth for each, and will include codes specifying where the person was located in the vehicle.
• Injuries: This bottom of the page also contains information about the injuries sustained in the accident, including a code that specifies the ambulance company that transported the injured person to the hospital.  
• Fault: The information about fault can be hard to find on the report, but it is on the middle of the page below the driver's name and address.  If any citations were issued by the police, they are usually noted here.  Likewise, if the police investigation determined the manner of the driver's fault (distraction, failing to yield right of way, speeding, running red light, etc) it will appear in this section.   
• Insurance Information: The insurance information collected by the police isn't always complete or accurate.  Our attorneys will carefully identify all possible sources of insurance coverage for our clients' injuries, including any insurance coverage that isn't listed on the accident report.

The above tips should help you understand the basics about reading a crash report.  

Seek Help When Needed

When you contact us about a car crash that left you or a loved one seriously injured, we will handle obtaining the official crash report so you can focus on your recovery. The Maine car accident attorneys at Berman & Simmons are top personal injury lawyers with an unmatched record for verdicts and settlements in car crash cases.  We were founded in Maine in 1914, and have grown to become the largest personal injury law firm with over $1.5 Billion recovered for our clients.  Berman & Simmons has the resources and experience to take on the most serious car crash cases anywhere in Maine and across the United States.

When the stakes are high following a serious car crash injury, you need a lawyer you can count on.  There is no need to wait for your crash report to be available: reach out to us today.