Should You Agree Not To Report A Car Accident?
When you get into an auto accident, the standard procedure is to notify your insurance company and the police about it. For one reason or another, though, the other party in the accident may ask you to not report the incident and instead try to work the situation out on a personal level. Considering how frustrating it can be to deal with an insurance provider, you may be tempted by this offer. Before you say yes, though, here are a few things you should consider.
You Could Land in Trouble
States typically mandate that accidents be reported to the DMV or law enforcement. Some require these agencies be notified of all incidents, while others only want people to report accidents if there were injuries or property damage. For example, Oregon requires people to report accidents to the DMV and law enforcement if the damage to vehicles or property amounted to $1,500 or more, vehicles were towed from the scene, or someone was injured or died.
If you fail to follow the law, you could experience monetary, administrative, or criminal consequences. For instance, Oregon will suspend your license and you may receive a citation if you don't report an accident to the appropriate agency. In Michigan, if you don't either notify the police of the accident or exchange information with the driver, you could face a $10,000 fine and be sentenced to up to 15 years jail time.
You Could Lose Coverage
Not reporting an accident can also result in a loss of insurance coverage. Auto insurance companies generally require policyholders to report accidents within a certain time period after they occur (e.g. 30 days after the incident). This is so the company can begin investigating the incident and collecting evidence to determine liability.
A couple of things can result if you don't tell your insurance company about the accident. Not reporting the incident within the time frame may result in you being permanently barred from submitting a claim to your policy. Even if that's not the case, the insurance company may still refuse to cover the incident if it's not able to properly investigate the accident due to missing or deteriorated evidence.
The second thing that can happen is your insurance company may cancel or refuse to renew your policy. Failing to properly report an accident may qualify as a violation of your contract, and you may be shown the door as a result.
Informal Agreements Rarely Work Out
The other driver may make all the promises in the world to pay for your damages if you agree to keep the incident quiet. However, these types of arrangements don't always work out. A common reason for this is the person may not be prepared to for the actual cost of the damages. For instance, the driver may only be expecting a $2,000 repair bill. If the actual estimated cost of repairs turns out to be $5,000, the person may not be as willing to pay as agreed.
Another issue is some injuries can take awhile to manifest. You may look okay at the scene of the accident but begin experiencing medical problems later on. If you include medical bills with the repair bills, the other person may think you're trying to scam him or her and give you a hard time about paying your expenses. And you can probably forget about collecting compensation for any long-term care you may need.
The only time you should even consider not reporting an accident is if it was a very mild fender bender with minimal damage and no injuries. Even then, you'll want to write up a contract so everyone is clear on what the agreement is. Otherwise, it's best to notify the appropriate parties about what happened to protect your rights and ensure you're fully compensated for your damages and losses. For more information or help with collecting money for an accident, contact an attorney.
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