MEMO FOR DRIVERS
What to do when an accident happens?
A traffic accident is a rather unpleasant situation that could happen to every driver. Even if you drive extremely carefully, there might be a chance that someone’s rash decisions will lead to an accident.
Your first actions | ||
| — switch off the engine and pull the hand bake, turn on the light; — get out of the car, put an emergency stop sign (at a distance of 20 meters in the city, and 40 meters outside of it); — assess the consequences of an accident, are there any victims? | ||
| Are there seriously injured or traumatized people after an accident? | ||
| If yes — talk to another participant of the accident about the reasons of it and check if there is an insurance; — obligatory take photos of the place of an accident, damaged cars from different angles (including with a license plate), road signs and markings; — negotiate and discuss with another driver the possibility to make «Europrotocol» (paragraph 2.11 of Traffic Rules): → which means that you both AGREE on equally acceptable terms of europrotocol, → you must determine the guilty person in the accident, →both car insurances must be valid, → damage shouldn’t go over 50 000 hrv., → drivers must be sober. | If no — provide first aid to injured people, call an ambulance and the police; — if this is not possible, ask people nearby to deliver the injured one to a medical institution, or take him by your own car (in an emergency); — take measures to save the traces of an accident, do not change the location of the car; — take witnesses contact information; — obligatory take photos of the place of an accident, damaged cars from different angles (including with a license plate), road signs and markings. | |
| When can we make Europrotocol»? | ||
| POSSIBLE — drivers make up the «europrotocol» at the accident place, indicating the circumstances and the scheme of the accident; — in this case, you shouldn’t call the police, and if the police arrives, you need to inform them that you are making «Europrotocol». | IMPOSSIBLE — you must call the police and before their arrival all evidence of an accident should be saved, it is prohibited to move cars; — try to get contacts of witnesses; — check the presence of video surveillance cameras at the place of an accident, a video recorder from other drivers. | |
When police officers arrive, they will draw up a road accident scheme, you and the other driver will receive clarifications, then the police will decide whether to take cars to police campground or not, and also they will determine if there a legal reason to take drivers’ licenses from drivers involved in an accident,.
Remember, the correctness of the first actions after an accident, including your testimony, the accuracy of fixing details of an accident will immensely influence the outcome of the case when it comes to the question of guilt or innocence of drivers in the accident.
Rules of the road traffic of Ukraine (actual extracts).
2.10. In case of involvement in an accident, the driver is obliged:
- immediately stop the car and stay at the place of an accident;
- put an emergency stop sign at a distance of 20 meters in city, and 40 meters outside of it (according to 9.10 Traffic rules);
- c) do not move the vehicle and evidence related to the incident;
- d) provide first aid to injured people, call an ambulance and the police;
— if this is not possible, ask people nearby to deliver the injured to a medical institution;
- e) if it is not possible to carry out the actions listed in subparagraph «d» of paragraph 2.10 of these TrafficRules, take the injured person to the nearest medical institution by your vehicle, having previously fixed the location, as well as the position of the vehicle after an accident; in the medical institution inform your name and license plate number (other documents are driver’s license or id card, registration document for the vehicle) and return to the place of an incident;
- f) report a traffic accident to the police department, write down the names and addresses of eyewitnesses, wait for the arrival of police officers;
- g) take all possible measures to save the traces of the incident, set some border and organize a detour around the scene;
- h) do not consume alcohol, drugs, or medicines (except those that are part of the approved first-aid kit) without the appointment of a medical worker before you go through medical examination.
2.11 in case of an accident with the participation of vehicles specified in the current contract of compulsory civil liability insurance, provided that such vehicles are operated by people whose liability is insured, with the absence of injured (deceased) people, and provided that the consent of drivers of such vehicles about accuracy of accidents circumstances is obtained, in the absence of signs of alcohol, narcotic or other intoxication, or being under the influence of medicinal products which, reduce attention and reaction speed, and if drivers make a report about an accident in accordance with established Motor (Transport) Insurance Bureau .
In such a case, the drivers of the above mentioned vehicles, after compiling the specified report are discharged of responsibility according to subparagraphs «d», «e» and «h «of clause 2.10 of these Traffic Rules.
