Witness Testimony Can Supplement Police Reports
After an accident, police will usually come to investigate the accident. The police may or may not issue citations finding a driver at fault for the accident, especially if it occurred on private property such as a business parking lot instead of a public roadway. Police will usually take statements from both drivers unless one driver is incapacitated due to injuries and unable to speak to officers. Police may still attempt to get a statement from the driver later at the hospital. Officers will also usually interview any witnesses. In some cases, police do not take witness statements.
If you were involved in an accident, the other driver may dispute that they were at fault for the accident. In fact, most insurance companies advise their insureds not to admit fault at the scene of the accident. Many companies even have this advice printed on their auto insurance cards. Therefore, a driver may not make a statement at all and may invoke his or her right to remain silent and avoid incrimination if police try to discuss the accident. In this type of case, witness statements can be very important later in court because the situation could become a contest of one driver’s word against another if no one else can testify about what happened.
