Advocacy & Safety - Mesa, AZ police will not respond to non injury accident

This article details many situation that the police should not respond to:
http://www.azcentral.com/community/mesa/articles/1109mr-calls1110.html

However they also will not respond to a non-injury vehicle accidents with less than $1000 in damages. This means that if you are hit while driving a bicycle but not injured you most likely will not get police response:

"Non-injury accidents, which average about 525 hours per month, also will not get an officer sent to the scene. Officers spend about 366 hours on average per month responding to the fender-benders now.

According to state law, police are required to respond to non-injury accidents when the damage is more than $1,000 or there is a crime involved such as a hit and run or a DUI.

Residents where the damage is less than $1,000 and involve no crime can swap information and be on their way, Meza said. Those involved in a non-injury crash can come to the department and file a report. If a third-party calls police about a crash, police will respond"

I would err on the side of any cuts, hard bumps, etc. to be an injury. Sometimes in the after shock of an accident one may not realize one in injured.

Also one can still insist on officer response to write a citation:
"If a resident insists on a police response, an officer will come and write a citation if a traffic violation has occurred."

Al

for cars vs. cars, I don't have a problem with this rule. Of course it's often difficult to judge damage on the scene. Going by consumer report's bumper damage tests, it's pretty easy to rack up over $1000 in damage for even a minor fender bender.

In cars vs. bikes, I guess it would depend on how the define "injury". For example, in Portland, you better be unconscious, have at least two of your limbs ripped off, and half of your bodily fluids spilled on the roadway for them to define it as an "injury" and investigate the "accident". Also, the way some cops view cyclists, you are probably better off not having them show up, or you might be the one cited instead of the driver of the automobile.

If you are not at fault, it is important to get a police report. Don’t give the other guy extra time to refine a made up story of how it was not their fault.

A guy in a company van left hooked my son (while he was driving his car). My son called me from the scene and said that the damage was not too bad and the other guy admitted it was his fault. My son asked what he should do. I told him to call 911 and get a police report, because the guy will change his story when he has to talk to his boss and he would blame my son for the accident.

That night my son asked if I wanted the police report. That surprised me since my experience was that it took at least a week to write and make a report available. Well it turns out that for non-injury and <$3,000 damage accidents, if you call 911 rather than just exchange information, the Honolulu Police now simply fill out a copy paper form with just the information the drivers are required to exchange if 911 was not called. No investigation, no citations, no statements, no drawings of the scene. WORTHLESS.

Sure enough, the guy lied and told his boss it was my sons fault. Talking to my insurance company, I told them about the “police report” we were given. They said, yeah they are worthless and they do not even bother obtaining those type of reports from the Honolulu Police anymore. My insurance company went to work and mad the other insurance pay up.

Interesting note Phoenix sends out an officer for fender benders. Imagine how many hours they waste.


Interesting court challenge with trying to get someone else's insurance. Shouldn't it be the cop who decides if a crime has happened or be there if there is one?

This really doesn't surprise me, but I doubt that they wouldn't respond to an accident involving a pedestrian or bicycle. The same stuff takes place in the Houston area; but they do make every accident involving a pedestrian or bicycle. Most departments will send an ambulance along with the police.

-Nate

almost all car-bike crashes will involve injury to the cyclist, so it sounds like they should respond to all such crashes.