§ 20-166.1. Reports and investigations required in event of accident. - North Carolina Statutes

§ 20‑166.1.  Reports andinvestigations required in event of accident.

(a)        Notice of Accident.– The driver of a vehicle involved in a reportable accident must immediately,by the quickest means of communication, notify the appropriate law enforcementagency of the accident. If the accident occurred in a city or town, theappropriate agency is the police department of the city or town. If theaccident occurred outside a city or town, the appropriate agency is the StateHighway Patrol or the sheriff's office or other qualified rural police of thecounty where the accident occurred.

(b)        InsuranceVerification. – When requested to do so by the Division, the driver of avehicle involved in a reportable accident must furnish proof of financialresponsibility.

(c)        Parked Vehicle. –The driver of a motor vehicle that collides with another motor vehicle leftparked or unattended on a highway of this State must report the collision tothe owner of the parked or unattended motor vehicle. This requirement appliesto an accident that is not a reportable accident as well as to one that is areportable accident. The report may be made orally or in writing, must be madewithin 48 hours of the accident, and must include the following:

(1)        The time, date, andplace of the accident.

(2)        The driver's name,address, and drivers license number.

(3)        The registrationplate number of the vehicle being operated by the driver at the time of theaccident.

If the driver makes a writtenreport to the owner of the parked or unattended vehicle and the report is notgiven to the owner at the scene of the accident, the report must be sent to theowner by certified mail, return receipt requested, and a copy of the reportmust be sent to the Division.

(d)        Repealed by SessionLaws 1995, c. 191, s. 2.

(e)        Investigation byOfficer. – The appropriate law enforcement agency must investigate a reportableaccident. A law‑enforcement officer who investigates a reportableaccident, whether at the scene of the accident or by subsequent investigationsand interviews, must make a written report of the accident within 24 hours ofthe accident and must forward it as required by this subsection. The reportmust contain information on financial responsibility for the vehicle driven bythe person whom the officer identified as at fault for the accident.

If the officer writing thereport is a member of the State Highway Patrol, the officer must forward thereport to the Division. If the officer is not a member of the State HighwayPatrol, the officer must forward the report to the local law enforcement agencyfor the area where the accident occurred. A local law enforcement agency thatreceives an accident report must forward it to the Division within 10 daysafter receiving the report.

When a person injured in areportable accident dies as a result of the accident within 12 months after theaccident and the death was not reported in the original report, the lawenforcement officer investigating the accident must file a supplemental reportthat includes the death.

(f)         Medical Personnel.– A county medical examiner must report to the Division the death of any personin a reportable accident and the circumstances of the accident. The medicalexaminer must file the report within five days after the death. A hospital mustnotify the medical examiner of the county in which the accident occurred of thedeath within the hospital of any person who dies as a result of injuriesapparently sustained in a reportable accident.

(g)        Repealed by SessionLaws 1987, c. 49.

(h)        Forms. – TheDivision shall provide forms or procedures for submitting crash data to personsrequired to make reports under this section and the reports shall be made in aformat approved by the Commissioner. The following information shall beincluded about a reportable crash:

(1)        The cause of thecrash.

(2)        The conditionsexisting at the time of the crash.

(3)        The persons andvehicles involved.

(4)        Whether the vehiclehas been seized and is subject to forfeiture under G.S. 20‑28.2.

(i)         Effect of Report.– A report of an accident made under this section by a person who is not a lawenforcement officer is without prejudice, is for the use of the Division, andshall not be used in any manner as evidence, or for any other purpose in anytrial, civil or criminal, arising out of the accident. Any other report of anaccident made under this section may be used in any manner as evidence, or forany other purpose, in any trial, civil or criminal, as permitted under therules of evidence. At the demand of a court, the Division must give the court aproperly executed certificate stating that a particular accident report has orhas not been filed with the Division solely to prove a compliance with thissection.

The reports made by personswho are not law enforcement officers or medical examiners are not publicrecords. The reports made by law enforcement officers and medical examiners arepublic records and are open to inspection by the general public at allreasonable times. The Division must give a certified copy of one of these reportsto a member of the general public who requests a copy and pays the fee set inG.S. 20‑42.

(j)         Statistics. – TheDivision may periodically publish statistical information on motor vehicleaccidents based on information in accident reports. The Division may conductdetailed research to determine more fully the cause and control of accidentsand may conduct experimental field tests within areas of the State from time totime to prove the practicability of various ideas advanced in traffic controland accident prevention.

(k)        Punishment. – Aviolation of any provision of this section is a misdemeanor of the Class set inG.S. 20‑176. (1953, c. 1340, s. 2; 1955, c. 913, s. 9; 1963, c.1249; 1965, c. 577; 1971, c. 55; c. 763, s. 1; c. 958, ss. 2, 3; 1973, c. 1133,ss. 1, 2; c. 1330, s. 29; 1975, c. 307; c. 716, s. 5; 1979, c. 667, s. 33;1981, c. 690, s. 14; 1983, c. 229, ss. 1, 2; 1985, c. 764, s. 33; 1985 (Reg.Sess., 1986), c. 852, s. 17; 1987, c. 49; 1993, c. 539, ss. 376, 377; 1994, Ex.Sess., c. 24, s. 14(c); 1995, c. 191, s. 2; 1998‑182, s. 12.1; 1999‑452,s. 19.)