Traffic rules

[aecoleman39]

I'll try and be brief but complete in my question and why I'm asking it. My wife was rear ended by another driver. She was nervous because we did not have insurance on the car at the time and she was going to be late for class. So she only took down the other drivers name and number. I contacted the other driver that afternoon but apparently after this woman spoke with her boyfriend they felt since we did not have insurance they were going to get off without having to do anything. This woman did not return our calls that evening so I called the city police. They stated we my wife should have called when the accident happened and because she didn't it was a civil matter. The next morning I contacted a private detective who was able to put a name and address with the cell number I had for the woman. I again called the local police and this time they at least called the woman but she refused to give up her auto insurance info. and again the officers stated it was a civil matter. I did some research and found that according to State of Iowa Code, my wife has 72 hours to report the incident and the police are required to take a report and submit it. Also that the other driver is compelled to divulge her insurance info. to the police and they to us. To go through civil court is lengthy and will cost us money. Meanwhile my car has $4,400 worth of damage to the rear end. The officers were annoyed with my wife and they had right to be. It would have been easier to take the report at the time but legally my wife IS following the rules. This seems a bit ridiculous when it is an open and shut deal. My wife was stopped at a light and another driver hit her in the back end. The insurance will pay to fix my car, we have learned a valuable lesson and will never again allow our insurance to lapse. My question is what do we do know?

[Samuel]

what are you hoping to have done or happen?

[marinepilot]

Let's see, you now want to file a report and have the police attempt to determine who was at fault after you made a civil deal with the other party. At the time you were afraid to call because you had no insurance, and were driving illegally without insurance, and you didn't want to receive a citation or worse. Then you state your insurance will pay for your damages, but you don't have any insurance? Do you think the other person's insurance will pay to fix your car? How do you know they even HAVE insurance, since you didn't. You may think you're following the law, but I'll bet there's another statute in there somewhere that states once you and the other driver make an agreement, the police are off the hook and it becomes... wait for it... a CIVIL matter!

I'm with Samuel, what are you now hoping to happen?

[G35 Mass]

If your car wasn't illegally on the road, this would have been a non-issue. This is a product of your own poor decisions.

[ET109]

Without an officer being at the scene, I don't really see how a report would be that useful.

"Ms. Jones came in and informed us she had been in and failed to report an accident. She claimed to have been rearended at a stop. She gave us a number she claimed to be that of the other party. We called the number but were unable to obtain relevant information. Based on Jones's story, the other party did not flee the scene or commit any unlawful acts. Ms. Jones was then issued state citation H-3300-013 for driving without valid insurance."

[retdetsgt]

Give the info to your insurance company if you have collision insurance. They'll probably track them down. If they don't they'll have to pay for it. They may track them down for you anyway, they have a lot of resources.

[marinepilot]

My wife was rear ended by another driver. She was nervous because we did not have insurance on the car at the time and she was going to be late for class. So she only took down the other drivers name and number. I contacted the other driver that afternoon but apparently after this woman spoke with her boyfriend they felt since we did not have insurance they were going to get off without having to do anything.

Give the info to your insurance company if you have collision insurance. They'll probably track them down. If they don't they'll have to pay for it. They may track them down for you anyway, they have a lot of resources.

Seems to me they didn't have insurance at the time of the crash. I truthfully doubt there's any insurance company out there that will come from behind and cover a crash for a person or vehicle they weren't covering at the time it happened.

[McNulty]

I don't see any way for you to get this documented by a police officer that doesn't involve your wife being charged with operating an uninsured vehicle.

[mcsap]

We will not take a report after the fact. If you don't call right away , you are on your.own. But I would cite you for driving w/o insurance. That's a $350 plus a 90 day loss of license. It isn't that your wife was nervous about being ins crash , its abour her driving illegally.

While that may not be enough to fully deny a claim, it could reduce what you get.

[retdetsgt]

Seems to me they didn't have insurance at the time of the crash. I truthfully doubt there's any insurance company out there that will come from behind and cover a crash for a person or vehicle they weren't covering at the time it happened.

Yeah, I read it not having an insurance card, not insurance. Never mind.

[APDSarge]

We do not take "delayed" accident reports either. We would tell you same thing, it's a civil matter. We would however, give you a report you could fill out yourself and send to the state for reporting purposes, but we would not do it for you - especially the next day or later.

If there is another crash, notify police immediately - and keep your insurance current.

[DeltaV]

The reason that most states have provisions in the law that give parties a certain time period to report the crash involve situations when people are incapacitated in a crash and are otherwise unable to provide the information required by law. It's not so people can get into civil arrangements and not involve the police in order to hide their own law violations only to change their mind at a later date.

Sue. That's your only option. We would not take a delayed report in this case either. Regardless of what the statute says when you exchanged information with the other driver you entered into a civil arrangement with them.

I would be hesitant to really push the matter with the police, as if they change their mind and decide to write a report then your wife would get a citation for not having insurance at the time of the crash. It doesn't matter that you have insurance now. I know in Florida that if you don't have insurance and are involved in a crash it's an automatic license suspension.

[TEXASCOP]

321.262 Damage to vehicle. Iowa code regarding accidents.
The driver of any vehicle involved in an accident resulting only in damage to a vehicle which is driven or attended by any person shall immediately stop such vehicle at the scene of such accident or as close thereto as possible but shall forthwith return to and in every event shall remain at the scene of such accident until the driver has fulfilled the requirements of section 321.263. Every such stop shall be made without obstructing traffic more than is necessary. Any person failing to stop or comply with said requirements under such circumstances shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and punished as provided in section 321.482.

321.266 Reporting accidents.

1. The driver of a vehicle involved in an accident resulting in injury to or death of any person shall immediately by the quickest means of communication give notice of such accident to the sheriff of the county in which said accident occurred, or the nearest office of the Iowa state patrol, or to any other peace officer as near as practicable to the place where the accident occurred.

2. The driver of a vehicle involved in an accident resulting in injury to or death of any person, or total property damage to an apparent extent of one thousand dollars or more shall also, within seventy-two hours after the accident, forward a written report of the accident to the department.

3. Every law enforcement officer who, in the regular course of duty, investigates a motor vehicle accident of which report must be made as required in subsections 1 to 3 of this section, either at the time of and at the scene of the accident or thereafter by interviewing participants or witnesses shall, within twenty-four hours after completing such investigation, forward a written report of such accident to the department.

It does not say the police are required to complete a report. The way I interpret that is IF an officer investigates. It says YOU shall within 72 hours complete a report and forward it to the department (I think the department means the state). It sound like as far as the Iowa statutes go, the drivers are responsible for completing the accident report as long as there is no serious injuries or death.

Here is a little quote from the Iowa Department of Transportation
Accident reports - Iowa Motor Vehicle Division
Reporting an accident
An accident occurring anywhere within the State of Iowa causing death, personal injury, or total property damage of $1,500 or more must be reported on an Iowa Accident Report form. However, such report is not required when the accident is investigated by a law enforcement agency. Failure to return an accident report form within 72 hours may result in suspension of your driving privileges. Note: You must attempt to completely fill out this report.

Also, the insurance information on page two of the report must be completed. Failure to complete insurance coverage information may result in the suspension of your driving and registration privileges.
The accident report form consists of the following four pages.

Page 1: Instructions for completing the form
Page 2: Accident codes used in the form
Page 3: Accident report form (steps 1 through 7)
Page 4: Accident report form (steps 8 through 10)

After signing and completion of the accident report form, mail pages 3 and 4 (you do not need to mail the instruction sheet nor accident code sheet) to:

Iowa Department of Transportation
Office of Driver Services
P.O. Box 9235
Des Moines, Iowa 50306-9235


I'm completely unfamiliar with Iowa statutes and I was able to find all that information relatively easy. I suggest you browse the link I posted and do some learning. IOWA PEACE OFFICERS ARE NOT REQUIRED TO FILE AN ACCIDENT REPORT WITHIN 72 HRS, YOU ARE.