[jijojackson]

Hi,

I was just searching for this thread, as I had a similar minor accident case where a two wheeler was involved, today in the morning (Sunday March 25 2012).

This was in JP Nagar 6th phase, 15th cross(24th A Main). I was taking a U turn in front of the IDBI bank, there was a swift behind me, who stopped for me to take the turn. While I was almost on the other side, a bike came over taking the swift and hit my car.

It was clearly his fault, as I had a car behind me stopped for my turn and my indicator was on. Then suddenly the mob gathered and finding out that I was not a kannadiga, they started threatening me that they can show the power of locals etc. Thank God, I was calm and hence the situation didnt escalate much. The bike rider was sure that it was his mistake and he kept quite.

One person walking by, told me to ignore the case and somehow get away as these people were just trying to get some money and cops would do the same as well.

So somehow, the bike rider told me that he didnt want any trouble and he was scared that i would go to the police station. I had my bumper damaged, but thought of letting it go and hence could walk away safely.

Me not knowing the language just made those goons feel a bit more confident, who otherwise would have confronted anyone.
A similar case happened to me in kerala as well. Despite knowing the language, some goons harassed me the same way.

So the basic humanity is already lost in our country and knowing the language might only delay the inevitable.

I would happily join a movement in bangalore that helps to prevent road rage and these manhandling during accidents.

[Jignesh]

In case of a Accident where there is damage only to your car:

If your vehicle skids of the road or there is a tyre burst or it falls on its side, etc & the damage is only to your Car. There is no damage to any Third Party Property property & no injury to any person on Road.

In cases like this, there is NO NEED FOR FIR.

Just inform the Insurance company on phone the City & Place of Accident & Tow the Car to nearest A.S.S. Remember that Insurance Company's liability is only to damage to your Car at the time of Accident. This means that say after accident you started the car & there was some damage to Engine - due to this subsequent action, then Insurance company will not entertain the claim for this Engine damage.

Generally Insurance companies have a fixed allowance for towing back your Car to nearest A.S.S. (Incase of Royal Sundaram it is Rs. 1,500) To claim this amount, you will have to preserve & submit the Original towing Invoice.

If the Accident of this kind (damage only to your car) has happened in some other City which is far away from your city of residence, then you can opt to Transport the Car back to your city & get if repaired there, in your presence. Insurance companies will not oppose this.

At the time of filling Claim form you will just have to write a declaration mentioning the reason for not filling FIR (as nobody was injured & no third party loss).

I am suggesting not to file FIR because that will mean additional time / effort loss which will not generate any benefit.

Thanks,

[NPV]

Need help from TBHP folks on the forum: (An accident I wasn't directly involved in but getting dragged into it now)
On Sunday 25 Mar I was on my way back to Bangalore via Shimoga on NH206.
When entering Arsikere town, an Indica car merged onto the highway from a diagonal road on the left. He was at about 40Kmph and did not even bother to look for any vehicles to his right as he merged. Since I was driving at low speed there was no issue. The Indica and my car were both on the right lane. Now starts the shocking incident !
Just a minute or two later I noticed a two wheeler in front of the Indica braking hard and in a fraction of seconds, the rider skidded and fell on the road. The Indica immediately swerved to avoid running over him and then moved to the left lane and slowed down. I did the same following the Indica and moved slowly to the left lane. Next, the Indica came to a stop about 50 metres ahead. Till now, I was in a state of shock since all this happened so fast. Since I saw the Indica stop, I proceeded ahead and I do not remember the registration number of the Indica.
This morning I got a call from the Arsikere police station saying an eyewitness has given my car number saying it was the one that knocked the two wheeler down. The person also mentioned that the victim is recovering in hospital. I have given him my version of the incident and the cop has asked me to come over so that the vehicle can be inspected and released by 5pm the same day. I'm not aware if a case has been registered against me or my vehicle. I'm still in a state of shock and this seems like a scene right out of a story/movie.

let me know the next course of action from my side. Also, any contacts you may have will help greatly when I go over to the Police station on Thursday.

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by NPV

and the cop has asked me to come over so that the vehicle can be inspected and released by 5pm the same day.

That is dicey. Is this normal procedure? Why should you go? Isn't it the job of the police to come to you to check for evidence?

Once you go there, there is no saying what the cops will do. Better take lawyer advice before you go.

[ravibhat]

0. Take it easy and have good faith since you are not involved in this incident/accident.
1. Try to convince cop to have their Bangalore counterpart inspect the vehicle.
2. Make sure you prepare well while discussing face to face with them since too many questions to honest professional can hurt his +ve and honest thinking and loose the control.
3. Being thats national highway why still government cant build bypass road? Really disappointing thing for not having bypass bangalore-shimoga highway.
4. We all hope things will be sorted out your way.

Ravi.

[rpripr]

Originally Posted by NPV

[u]

let me know the next course of action from my side. Also, any contacts you may have will help greatly when I go over to the Police station on Thursday.

Better check with a lawyer or maybe the nearest police station. Also take snaps/video of your car to prove it was not your car which caused the collision. The locals always gang up against outsiders and bigger vehicles, so it does not matter whose fault it was. There are enough people who have a lot of time to create problems for others.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by rpripr

Better check with a lawyer or maybe the nearest police station. Also take snaps/video of your car to prove it was not your car which caused the collision. The locals always gang up against outsiders and bigger vehicles, so it does not matter whose fault it was. There are enough people who have a lot of time to create problems for others.

I did check with both the lawyer and local police station. I've been advised to wait to hear from the concerned cop/station again (this is most likely an overzealous cop who called on getting a vehicle number but in this case my vehicle was not involved in the accident but seen nearby). Unfortuantely I do not have any picture/video. Since it all happened so quickly and the other car (which was just behind the 2 wheeler that skidded) stopped there, I did not want to stop as I was with my family and wasn't sure how the crowd would react just in case they felt I was responsible

[apachelongbow]

Originally Posted by NPV

I did check with both the lawyer and local police station. I've been advised to wait to hear from the concerned cop/station again (this is most likely an overzealous cop who called on getting a vehicle number but in this case my vehicle was not involved in the accident but seen nearby). Unfortuantely I do not have any picture/video. Since it all happened so quickly and the other car (which was just behind the 2 wheeler that skidded) stopped there, I did not want to stop as I was with my family and wasn't sure how the crowd would react just in case they felt I was responsible

Don't bother to do anything. If the cop calls again, tell him u where at home at the date and time this supposed incident occurred. Ask him to prove that your car was present at the accident spot.

[bblost]

What a load of nonsense from the cop. If they are sure you caused the accident, they need to come and inspect your car. Or get a warrant against you to produce the car.

Then they need to match any paint smear on your car with the accident spot. Either the bike or anything else there.

The onus of producing proof is on them. No one is guilty until proved otherwise.

But check with a lawyer. I strongly advice given the state of our country, take a lawyer along if going to meet that policeman.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by apachelongbow

Don't bother to do anything. If the cop calls again, tell him u where at home at the date and time this supposed incident occurred. Ask him to prove that your car was present at the accident spot.

How I wish I had the smartness to say that !
Being innocent & honest at the same time is a bad combination and I already told him that there was an incident that happened and I was just a spectator
Anyways, now a lawyer friend is helping me with this and he has spoken to the cop. We may have to visit the concerned station to complete some formalities (if necessary).

[NPV]

Update:
I visited the concerned police station where an FIR had been lodged mentioning my car's registration number as the car that knocked down the 2 wheeler. The cops had done their due diligence by checking if the car was recently given at any authorised service centre for repairs but they still inspected the car and convinced themselves that it wasn't my car responsible for the accident. The complainant and his 'people' (about 15 of them) also inspected the car to convince themselves. They were actually shocked since they were pretty sure it was me and they had simply ignored the other car, that had stopped near the accident spot very briefly. After taking a statement from both parties, the case was closed.
All's well that ends well !
Thanks to all the folks who gave very valuable suggestions, special thanks to Fauji sir & ravibhat for all their support.

On a lighter note, the complainant had described my car and given the correct number too and also said it had a yellow board on the bumper (they suspected it to be a Taxi!) - turned out to be the LTD sticker

[snkjr]

Let's take a look at what the law says. I'm reproducing here, verbatim, Section 134 of the The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. Please note that it is required of every citizen to abide by the law.

[BEGIN]
134. Duty of driver in case of accident and injury to a person.

When any person is injured or any property of a third party is damaged, as a result of an accident in which a motor vehicle is involved, the driver of the vehicle or other person in charge of the vehicle shall –

(a) unless it is not practicable to do so on account of mob fury or any other reason beyond his control, take all reasonable steps to secure medical attention for the injured person, [by conveying him to the nearest medical practitioner or hospital, and it shall be the duty of every registered medical practitioner or the doctor on the duty in the hospital immediately to attend to the injured person and render medical aid or treatment without waiting for any procedural formalities], unless the injured person or his guardian, in case he is a minor, desired otherwise;

(b) give on demand by a police officer any information required by him or, if no police officer is present, report the circumstances of the occurrence, including the circumstances, if any, or not taking reasonable steps to secure medical attention as required under clause (a), at the nearest police station as soon as possible, and in any case within twenty-four hours of the occurrence;

(c) give the following information in writing to the insurer, who has issued the certificates of insurance, about the occurrence of the accident, namely :-

(i) insurance policy number and period of its validity;

(ii) date, time and place of accident;

(iii.) particulars of the persons injured or killed in the accident;

(iv.) name of the driver and the particulars of his driving licence.

Explanation. – For the purposes of this section, the expression “driver” includes the owner of the vehicle.
Corresponding Law. – Section 134 corresponds to section 89 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939.
Objects and Reasons. – Clause 134 sets out the duties of the driver involved in accident, such as reporting the accident to the Police Station, rendering medical aid to the injured, etc.
[END]

[CR-V]

Have been involved in different accidents which different kind of people where had to handle situation differently. From cases where the other person agreed to take my car to the workshop and get it fixed, to outright no negotiation - head to the cops and court and the most common one people apologising and asking for forgiveness.

Though I find my self lost as to what is it that you are suppose to do in case of an accident? What I expect from my experience driving abroad

In case of a accident where person one agrees his fault and person two's car gets fixed through person one's insurance. In case no person agrees his or her fault then have to follow court which decides who's fault it was.

What I have experienced in the accidents I have been involved in India

1.
Only calling the cops at the scene while both vehicles are present and asking for a FIR have been told both cars will be impounded straight away if I go ahead with the FIR (never actually filed a FIR at the spot and unsure if the rule of both cars being impounded is true, but definitely doesn't make sense a simple video/photo of the cars should suffice any inquiry as it does for insurance surveyors)

2.
Hit and run in which case FIR was filled in one instance with complete registration number and one without. In both cases the main question was if any person was hurt or was it just property damage. Both falling under only property damage didn't hear any update and the status always remained investigation/open. (I assume if a person is hurt it makes it a criminal case otherwise a non-cognisable offence)

3.
Person agreed to pay full or part of the damage (lets call him person uno). In one instance one guy tried to contacted his insurance company to check if they can cover the damages to my car - we both physically went to the insurance companies office. The insurance company denied any reimbursement and further claimed that even if we go to court and it is proved that person uno is at fault the insurance company is not under any obligation to cover the cost. (person uno had a fully comprehensive policy, this is the most shocking point out of the 3)


Don't have much of guidance as to what steps should one take in case of accident but I am sure will get a some helpful advice from the experienced and experts.

Some specific questions that I have

First Step to take after a accident.

Exchange insurance information or in other words insurance company of A paying for damages to B. No such policy or law that covers this?

Mods: kindly move thread to appropriate section, Advice by TBHP perhaps? Or merge with a exiting thread if one exists, couldn't find anything related in my efforts

[pacman2881]

A thread already exists on this. Please check -
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...-accident.html

[CR-V]

Ofcourse it does, need to work on my searching skills.

If someone could kindly merge this.