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29th January 1983
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

Harry Wilkins has attended the scenes o nearly 1,000 accidents. He talks about hi work and how it can help you

YES, accidents will happen — unfortunately this is only too true. Every year in Great Britain there are about 250,000 road accidents in which somebody is either killed or injured, and there are many more which do not find their way into the accident statistics because no one is hurt.

Every year, some 6,000 people are killed in these accidents — an average of 16 every day. Why do these dreadful things happen? What can be done.

Government Departments, such as the Transport and Road Research Laboratory, have been looking into the causes of accidents for years. They have used their findings to decide what sort of research should be carried out into the various aspects of road safety. Much research has been carried out, and the results have been applied in a practical way with considerable success — look at the extract from the Government Statistical Service's publication Road Accidents Great Britain 1980 shown below.

You can see that in spite of the tremendous increase in the number of vehicles on the road, the number of people killed in road accidents is actually falling, and there are fewer people killed now than there were back in 1938.

But accidents do still happen. If you were unfortunate enough to be involved in one, and ring up the Transport and Road Research Laboratory and say "I've had an accident. Can you help me by looking into it?" it will politely say "No."

However, over the past few years, a new service has gradually become available — that of the accident investigator. This service is now available to all — anyone can employ an investigator to look into a particular accident and find out what actually caused it.

Why use an accident investigator?

There are many situations in which an accident investigator can be useful. For example, suppose an individual driver is involved in an accident and the police are prosecuting him for some infringement of the regulations. He may feel that he was not really at fault and that an independent expert could help him.

I was recently involved in a case where a draw-bar trailer rolled over on a roundabout, and as a result of the impact with the road surface the load broke away from the trailer and rolled down the road.

When the police arrived at the accident scene they saw that the load was not secured to the trailer, and they proceeded to prosecute the driver for having an insecure load. was able'to point out in court t one of the reasons why the Iler rolled over was that in fact load was secured to it (he s really going too fast) and case was dismissed. The rer retained his clean licence i was very satisfied. Had the lice prosecuted him for eless driving then that would re been a different story.

■ ccident investigators can be !ful in civil claims resulting of a road accident, particuy where large sums of money involved. Insurance cover :s not always cover everyig, and if the person involved a lot at stake he cannot just back and let the insurance pani es sort it out between mselves. An accident investior's report can often lead to a sfactory settlement out of rt.

arge fleet operators can call an accident investigator to t out a particular problem ly may have with their ides. For example, perhaps a / type of vehicle has been introduced to the fleet and in a short time one or more of them has been involved in a roll-over accident. The drivers may, quite naturally, become very concerned about the stability of these vehicles, and may even refuse to drive them. An independent expert can look at the accidents, find out what happened, and also whether or not the vehicles concerned are less stable than others.

How does an accident investigator work?

In an ideal world, the investigator would be called in as soon as the accident happened. He would be able to get to the accident scene before the vehicles are moved, he would be able to take measurements and photographs, and he would be able to talk to the people involved while everything was still fresh in their minds. Unfortunately, this ideal way is not possible in practice although it is the way in which some research teams have worked with the co-operation of the police.

In the real world, the accident investigator is called in months or even years after the accident has occurred. By then the vehicles will probably have been scrapped or repaired, and the road may even have been resurfaced. All that the investigator has to go on, if he can get them, are the police records, which will include statements made by the people involved, plans with measurements and photographs.

Sometimes the information available is very good and complete, sometimes it's a little sketchy, However, it is usually quite sufficient, and a skilled investigator will be able to weigh everything up and come to an expert opinion regarding the causes of the accident. He may well visit the accident site to look at lines of visibility.

Then, when he has looked at every aspect and has made the necessary calculations, he will produce a report giving his opinion. If necessary, he will appear in court as an "expert witness" to give his opinion on oath.

Will an accident investigator always be able to help you?

I'm afraid the answer to this must be "not necessarily." An accident investigator must be truly independent, and although he should be able to sort out the problem, he may not come to the conclusion which his client would like.

I have heard complaints about an investigator which were of the form "You'd wonder which side he was on. More use to the other side than me, and I'm paying him!"

This is quite unfair it must be fully understood that an investigator's report may not always be favourable to his client. An investigator cannot always be sure what his findings will be until he has gone fully into the details and this can involve a lot of work.

Sometimes though he will be able to give an idea as to what his findings are likely to be right at the start of the investigation, and then it is up to the client to decide whether or not to employ him.

How to find an accident investigator This is not always easy. It is one of the few cases where it is no good looking in the Yellow Pages because there is no suitable classification. If you are a fleet operator, you should approach the investigator directly Commercial Motor should be able to help you find one. If you are interested in help regarding a particular accident in which you were yourself involved, it is often best to deal through your solicitor; the Law Society keeps a list of experts, but they may not recommend particular ones.

When considering whether or not a particular investigator is likely to prove satisfactory, bear in mind that although some sort of academic qualification is desirable, theory alone is quite insufficient. It is essential that he should have a background of investigating actual road accidents, preferably at the accident scene. This means that in practice he will probably have to have been employed directly or indirectly by the government or a research organisation. He should personally have investigated a lot of accidents, at least hundreds, as there is no subsitute for practical experience.

He should also, preferably, have had practical experience of vehicles of all types, and know how they behave when they are pushed beyond safe limits when they are being braked or cornered. He should know what factors affect the grip between tyres and roads, and how to measure this grip. He should know about skid marks, and how they give a guide to speed. He has to know the answers to all sorts of things or at least where to find them!

You may come across insurance assessors who are willing to write reports on accidents, but it should be remembered that their experience may be very limited. Some reports I have seen from assessors are (quite naturally) almost entirely concerned with vehicle damage details, and the causes of the accidents are hardly mentioned.

Well, let's hope you don't become an accident statistic, but if you do, an accident investigator may be able to help you. Choose him carefully, and call him in early the earlier he is called in the better job he can do.


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