Got in an accident - advice?

[tiktok]

I rear ended a taxi, totally my fault I know, although very low speed and no visible damage to either vehicle. I have no idea of the claims process in Singapore. Is there anything I should know or do to cover my ass?

[x9200]

I rear ended a taxi, totally my fault I know, although very low speed and no visible damage to either vehicle. I have no idea of the claims process in Singapore. Is there anything I should know or do to cover my ass?

You should have taken good, detailed photos of the taxi and your vehicle. This is probably all that could be done.

[PNGMK]

You should do a report at the nearest insurance reporting centre so you are not hit with a ridiculous counterclaim. It may be worth reporting to the nearest NPP so you are not accused of hit and run which is a huge hassle IME.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Both excellent pieces of advice but it might be hard to get photos of the Taxi now and photos of the accident location (important as well).

[x9200]

You should do a report at the nearest insurance reporting centre so you are not hit with a ridiculous counterclaim. It may be worth reporting to the nearest NPP so you are not accused of hit and run which is a huge hassle IME.

The police is only interested if there are injuries 7 days MC/hospitalization or more. I tried this, even inquiring at the traffic police HQ and looks they don't give a *beep* for anything minor.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Yeah, but you can still demand to make a police report and that way the details are recorded timely and even though no action will be taken, you have a timely report of the details of the accident while still fresh.

[PNGMK]

Yeah, but you can still demand to make a police report and that way the details are recorded timely and even though no action will be taken, you have a timely report of the details of the accident while still fresh.

Consult a solicitor before filing a report. Filing a report is filing a sworn statement and can be taken as an admission of guilt. Also not filing a report can be taken as silent admission of guilt. Don't ask me how I know....

[jeremycai00]

Some key things to note when involved in a traffic accident with another vehicle:

1. Do not move your car regardless of how the incident blocks the traffic. Promptly get down and take detailed photos of the damage and positioning of the vehicles. This helps to support your accident reporting in case the other party decides to give an inaccurate reporting of the incident (I've seen this happen many times before so it makes sense to play it safe on our part). Don't forget to get an image of the other driver's identity card.

2. Accident reporting MUST be done within 24 hours of the accident. Again this is to ensure your report stands strong with the authorities. Even if you decide to do a private settlement, it is a MUST for you to make the report anyway. If the other party makes a report and you don't, it will be all his words (his reporting) against yours (no reporting). Authority can only believe the one who made the report diligently.

I suppose this comes much too late. Let's hope that this piece of information proves useful for others in the future. Drive safe everyone!

[tiktok]

Thanks. The other party claimed they were injured with is ridiculous. I had to make a police statement. Ended up getting a "stern warning" letter from the police, which has no options to accept or appeal, so I assume it has no real legal weight.

[PNGMK]

This dos not surprise me. I can talk about this now as the case has been closed but I have had nothing but pure harassment from the SPF TP about a an alleged accident I was in last year (another driver claimed I caused an accident but I did not hit any other vehicles nor cause an accident and there are no additional details available). The TP IO rang up every week claiming I had to file a report for an accident I simply wasn't in. I ended up hiring a solicitor to deal with this who was adamant in her advice which is:

1. NEVER file a report for a "non accident" even if the TP ask you too. Legally you are not required to do so. A report becomes a sworn statement which opens a whole can of legal issues.
2. The person with the most guangxi wins in these cases which means if you're white or a FT you will always be assumed to be at fault. In SPF TP logic filing a report means you must have been in the accident (even if you weren't).
3. The SPF TP go for low hanging fruit - i.e. they aren't very good at investigating difficult and long cases (or maybe efficient is a better word) but they are damn good at ringing up about minor issues week after week.
4. A LOT of this is driven by insurance issues even if the TP say they aren't. Without a police report it's quite hard to start an insurance claim against someone- my solicitor basically said that in my case the reason the other driver is pressuring TP to get me to make a report was so that that driver at fault could then loop me into the insurance claim process even though I was not an involved driver in the criminal sense but I could be made civilly liable.

It sounds ridiculous to pay $1000 in legal fees but the alternative was unlimited liability and legal issues. In private my solicitor had nothing but harsh words for the TP (not the SPF but the TP branch).

[PNGMK]

Thanks. The other party claimed they were injured with is ridiculous. I had to make a police statement. Ended up getting a "stern warning" letter from the police, which has no options to accept or appeal, so I assume it has no real legal weight.

This is just the beginning I fear. Now with that judgement from the TP I believe the other party will begin a claim for injury against you (perhaps via their insurance company). The other party would have been pushing the TP for a judgement as prima facie to begin a claim against you.

[tiktok]

Oh dear. What was the conclusion in your case? Did you end up reporting to TP?

In my case I did admit that I was momentarily distracted and nudged the car in front. They had a cam, I did not. I expect my insurance to go up but I hope that will be the end of the matter.

[PNGMK]

Oh dear. What was the conclusion in your case? Did you end up reporting to TP?

In my case I did admit that I was momentarily distracted and nudged the car in front. They had a cam, I did not. I expect my insurance to go up but I hope that will be the end of the matter.

No because I was not in an accident. The advice from my solicitor is to avoid any interaction with the police as far as possible and to avoid reporting and if you do report seek advice. You admitted in a sworn statement to a crime (distracted driving is an offense), no way would I have admitted that.

[jeremycai00]

Oh dear. What was the conclusion in your case? Did you end up reporting to TP?

In my case I did admit that I was momentarily distracted and nudged the car in front. They had a cam, I did not. I expect my insurance to go up but I hope that will be the end of the matter.

You could have been momentarily distracted by anything. Eg. there was an obstacle on the road you were paying attention to and wanted to avoid. Just make sure your account of the incident remains consistent. If it's a nudge, it cannot cause that much injury damage. It seems they are making a meal out of this, which is common. Hopefully they see the small impact from the recording and start questioning how such a minor knock could cause them such a disaster. I'd also suggest that you just leave it to your insurer to fight this out with the taxi's insurer. Since it's already happened, there's nothing much you can do about it anymore. Worrying certainly doesn't stop the TP from working. Hang in there buddy! :p

[tiktok]

Just found out yhey are claiming 10k for "pain and suffering" plus a few hundred for other bs. There's a total scam going on here. But yes, I will not stress and let my insurer do their job. Thanks.