No police accident report legally decides liability, and in most states the report form for a car accident involving a bicycle has no box labeled fault. The view of liability is still spread across sections of the form most people skim, and it can rest on the driver’s account alone if an ambulance took you away before the officer gathered statements.
If the report says you belonged in a bike lane or on the sidewalk, even where the law does not require it, the crash report needs a closer read.
- Where Does a Police Report State Its View of Fault?
- Which Bike-Law Codes Should You Check?
- What If You Never Gave a Statement?
- Can a Ticket Prove Fault?
- Who Decides Liability After a Police Accident Report?
- How Do You Correct Errors in a Police Crash Report?
- What Happens if No Police Report Was Filed After the Accident?
- Get Your Police Report Reviewed Before You Talk to an Insurer
- Get a FREE case evaluation today
Where Does a Police Report State Its View of Fault?
The officer’s view sits in four sections of an accident report, plus the unit number on some state forms, such as Illinois’. Many states base their forms on the voluntary federal Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria, so these parts recur, though forms and rules vary by state and these examples are illustrations, not a full list.
- Violation codes. A code beside a party cites the traffic law the officer believes was broken. It is the closest the report comes to naming fault.
- Contributing factors. These checkboxes list what the officer thinks caused the crash, such as failure to yield or inattention. Washington State Patrol’s Police Traffic Collision Report Instruction Manual (2022) lists a “None” code for any party, so these boxes can blame no one.
- The narrative. It records details from the accident scene, such as skid marks, debris, signals, weather, intersection location, and where each vehicle and your bike came to rest. It also notes what witnesses and each person involved said. Check whether your account is there and whether the driver’s description fits the physical evidence.
- The diagram. A sketch marks direction of travel, lane position and point of impact, and the intersection where the accident occurred. Check every arrow, because one misdrawn arrow can put you on the wrong side of the road.
- Unit numbers. Washington’s manual assigns Unit 1 “regardless of which unit is at fault.” Illinois’ SR 1050 instruction manual (2019) says to enter the apparent at-fault unit as Unit 1, or the striking unit if liability is not evident, which can be you if your bike struck the car. A unit number alone does not prove liability.
The rest of the form holds factual details, such as date, location, conditions, witness contacts and insurance information. On the Texas CR-3, contributing factors are labeled “Investigator’s Opinion,” and a review of 760 Boston police bicycle crash reports found those fields blank about 92 percent of the time.
Which Bike-Law Codes Should You Check?
Check each code against your state’s traffic and bicycle laws for errors, especially codes that treat lawful riding as a violation.
- Lane position. When you ride slower than traffic, most states require you to keep as far right as practicable. The usual exceptions are passing, turning left and avoiding hazards, including a substandard-width lane, one too narrow for a car and a bike to share side by side (Cal. Veh. Code § 21202 is one example).
- Bike lanes. In states that require bike-lane use, you may usually still leave the lane to turn or avoid hazards.
- Sidewalks. Sidewalk riding is often left to local ordinance. Where no law required you to use a bike lane or the sidewalk, a code saying you belonged there is an error worth challenging.
- Helmets. Riding without a helmet rarely bears on who caused the crash. The rules differ on whether not wearing one can reduce injury damages.
- Real violations. Wrong-way riding and night riding without a required headlamp are violations that can be fairly coded. They count toward your liability only if they helped cause the crash.
What If You Never Gave a Statement?
When an ambulance takes you from the scene before the officer reaches you, the narrative usually rests on the driver’s account and whichever witnesses stayed. Insurers may therefore read the report largely as one person’s version of the crash. Still, physical evidence in the file, such as where your bike came to rest and the point of impact, can contradict that account.
Can a Ticket Prove Fault?
A ticket settles a traffic charge, not who caused the crash, so drivers who were not ticketed have not been cleared of liability. Insurers still read a ticket as a sign of who broke the law, even where that evidence would be kept out of court.
If you were ticketed, ask an attorney before you pay it. Paying can count as a guilty plea or a conviction, as it does in Illinois and California.
Who Decides Liability After a Police Accident Report?
The officer’s opinion is the first word on liability, not the last, so a report that blames you or names no one does not end your claim. A San Diego city review of police bicycle crash data noted that liability-related codes reflect the initial assessment and are occasionally revised later. Insurers run their own investigation and can disagree with the report after weighing it against photos, video, and sometimes accident reconstruction.
Liability can be split between you and the other party, so a wrong code can shrink or end your recovery, depending on your state’s rule. In the contributory negligence states of Alabama, Maryland, North Carolina and Virginia, any share of liability can defeat your injury claim.
How Do You Correct Errors in a Police Crash Report?
A factual error in your crash report, such as a wrong street, direction of travel, wrong description, or missing witness, can usually be amended if you submit photos or statements to the agency. The liability opinion itself is harder to change. Instead, ask to file a supplemental record with your proof. Texas, for example, requires the law enforcement agency to file a supplement with the police department when new facts emerge, including when test results arrive or a hit-and-run driver is later identified. See how to correct a bicycle accident police report, step by step.
What Happens if No Police Report Was Filed After the Accident?
Missing police crash reports are common after bike accidents, especially when drivers leave the scene. An Illinois data-linkage study found that about 74 percent of hospital-treated cyclists struck by motor vehicles from 2016 to 2019 had no matching crash report on file with any law enforcement agency.
A claim can still go forward without a report. Your state may also require a separate report filed with its motor vehicle agency, with its own deadline. Report a hit-and-run right away, because uninsured motorist coverage can depend on it.
Without a report, insurers rely on photos and witness accounts, so collect that evidence for your insurance claim early.
Get Your Police Report Reviewed Before You Talk to an Insurer
Send your police report to Bicycle Accident Lawyers Group (BALG) for a free consultation before you answer the insurer. The firm handles bicycle accident cases exclusively on a contingency fee basis, so you pay nothing unless the attorney recovers compensation for you. Call (888) 521-6377 or visit the website.
Robert Goldwater is a cyclist representing cyclists. He has practiced personal injury and wrongful death law for more than 20 years, graduating with Honors from Arizona State University Law School, and has helped recover over $1 billion for clients, including injured cyclists.
