Injury Lawyer: Investigating an Ottawa Motor Vehicle Collision
Have you ever wondered how the Ottawa Police Service investigates an Ottawa collision?
According to the Ottawa Police website, after an accident, here is the protocol for calling the police:
- A police report is not required if damage to all vehicles is under $1,000.
- If there are injuries and the vehicle(s) cannot be driven…call 9-1-1
- If there are no injuries, but the vehicle(s) cannot be driven… call 613-230-6211
- If the vehicle(s) can be safely driven and there are no injuries, as soon as possible, or when directed by police, drive all vehicles to the same police station to file a report.
Keep in mind that injuries that appear minor at the scene may become much worse over the ensuing hours or days. When you have any doubt about whether an injury has caused any injury, Auger Hollingsworth recommends you call the police. Also, if there is any dispute over who caused the accident, you will have a much more reliable motor vehicle accident report if the police attend the scene.
For serious car accidents where there has been a fatality or life threatening injuries, the Ottawa Police Collision Investigation Unit conducts an investigation. Some of the techniques the police use include:
– Measuring tire marks and coefficients of friction to calculate the speed of the involved vehicles
– Downloading the crash data retrieval system that monitors the air bag system. This is your car’s “black box”. Did you even know your car had one?
– Time/distance/velocity calculations.
– Using momentum formulas to determine vehicle velocities and angles.
– Fall and vault calculations.
– Pedestrian throw distances to determine the velocity of the vehicle.
The lawyers at Auger Hollingsworth obtain the motor vehicle accident report for every case when it is available.
