What are Hit and Run Accidents
In a hit-and-run accident, the driver who is responsible for the accident leaves the scene of the accident without exchanging any details to contact. This is against the law if we leave the scene of the accident without providing any contact details or the details of the insurance.
There are different types of hit-and-run accidents like any vehicle looking to exit quickly unnoticed or any vehicle or bus slowing down because of the traffic, the driver is not insured or involved in a crime.
If anyone is involved in an accident with an uninsured vehicle and wants to make a claim for compensation, we submit these claims to the Motor Insurer’s Bureau. They review the evidence and pay the compensation for the accident. Your compensation will depend on the number of injuries, recovery time, and severity.
We need to report the accident to the police, even if we have not received any contact details of the other driver. The police will investigate the scene of the accident and will work to decide who is at fault. They review the accident videos, CCTV footage, and photographs from the scene of the accident and speak to the witnesses.
The police will review the CCTV footage, and check the surveillance cameras to trace the driver.
Penalty For Hit and Run Cases
The driver who leaves the scene of the accident has to pay penalties as he has not reported the accident to the police or failed to stop. The penalties can be six months imprisonment or a fine.
In case of serious accidents, the punishments can be severe. In a hit-and-run case if the driver of the other vehicle died then the imprisonment will be 14 years and apart from punishment, there will be other liabilities such as compensation to the family of the driver or to the non-faulty driver.
Hit-and-run cases are serious and are because of the negligence or rash driving of the other driver. The offense is aggravated because of serious damage or personal injury and can lead to more penalties and punishment.
You will have 5–10 points on your driving license.
What to do After the Accident?
Immediately after the accident, we need to follow these steps
- Stop and Park your vehicle
- Make you’re everyone in the vehicle is safe
- Report the incident to the police
- Speak to your insurance representative
- Contact your GP or visit to a hospital
- Gather information after the accident
- Take photographs of the vehicle damages and surroundings
- Speak to the individual who is the witness.
- Check if there is any camera near the scene of the accident to get CCTV footage.
Road Traffic Act 1988
According to the Law of road traffic act 1988, under the section 170
Under this section of road traffic, it is an offense if a person fails to stop and exchange details
If anyone fails to stop and provide details about his penalties then it will be dealt as a hit-and-run case.
If we fail to stop or fail to report the accident we can defend these offenses, you can defend if
- You were not driving the vehicle
- We were not driving the vehicle in a public place
- You have stopped the vehicle to exchange details
- You are not aware of the accident
- You were not in the country when the accident happened
Role of the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB)
In hit-and-run cases where the driver leaves the scene of the accident and cannot be traced, the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) can help us. The role of MIB is to provide compensation to the individuals involved in an accident with uninsured and unbraced vehicle drivers.
If we make a claim through the MIB, we will provide the evidence, that you were involved in an accident and the vehicle is untracked. Your solicitor or accident management company can guide you to gather the evidence and submit the claim to MIB.
MIB has a large database of registered vehicles, and this database is used by DVLA and the police to trace uninsured vehicles and hit-and-run cases.
If a car is not on the records of the Motor Insurance Database, then there can be 3 possibilities:
- The car has an Off-Road Notification known as SORN
- A mistake was made while ensuring the vehicle
- The vehicle is not insured.
If the Vehicle Details are Not Correct
If you’ve insured your car, but it is not found on the MID search, then it’s possible that the registration details on your insurance are incorrect.
Review your policy documents and check your registration, or contact your insurance company representative to check the details.
Common mistakes can be:
- Typing or Missing letter of the vehicle reg
- Letter mentioned wrongly
- Difference of 0 instead of and O
Conclusion
We can trace the driver in a hit-and-run case with the help of evidence. If the driver responsible for the accident fails to stop, then it will be a hit-and-run case. In these types of accidents, we need to gather the evidence, speak to witnesses, and get as much information as we can.
If a vehicle is on the road without insurance, this can result into
- £300 fine
- 5-10 Penalty points on your license
To check the claim’s history, we can make a request to the data controller of claims underwriting.
