If you are not taken for emergency treatment you should wait until the Cleveland police department arrives in order to complete a car accident report. The Cleveland police will collect the details of the car accident including location, time, date, parties involved, conditions, who is at fault, and they usually take photographs. They will then generate a report. It is always good, however, to take your own photographs if possible. The Cleveland Police, however, will not always come if you call them for a car accident. Remember that even if they don’t come you are required by Ohio Law to report the car accident so you should report to the nearest Cleveland Police department district to report the accident. If the they do come the Cleveland Police might not always want to write a car accident report but it is there policy, which can be found here, to do so. The policy states in part, as follows:
“Officers of the Cleveland Division of Police shall complete an OH-1 for all motor vehicle crashes investigated by the Division, including private property and Property Damage Only (PDO) accidents with damage estimates under the Ohio reportable dollar amount. Unless a fatality occurs, these incidents remain local and are not sent to the Ohio Department of Public Safety (ODPS). When possible, officers shall identify the unit at fault and issue a citation, make a physical arrest when appropriate, or warn the motorist based on probable cause developed from physical evidence and/or witness information present at the time.”
If they do write a report you can request your Cleveland car accident report by going to the City of Cleveland’s public records portal which can be found here, sign up for an account, submit a request, wait a few days for a notification that the report is ready, then log into the account and download or view the report. You can also use this account to request all kinds of records from various City of Cleveland departments. It is quite efficient and useful. The Cleveland police department, however, refers requests for Cleveland car accident reports to the Ohio Department of Public Safety website which can be accessed here. It will likely be several days or even weeks after the accident before you can access the report from this website though and wont contain all reports. As a former Cuyahoga County Prosecutor working with the Cleveland Police department often, I know it can sometimes be difficult to get reports and information from the Cleveland police but have had success calling the Cleveland police district where the accident happened and asking someone there for the report or information. There are 5 Cleveland Police districts. You can reach the 1stdistrict by calling 216-623-5100, the 2nd district by calling 216-623-5200, the 3rd district by calling 216-623-5300, the 4th district by calling 216-623-5400, and the 5th district by calling 216-623-5500. The Cleveland police are supposed to determine who is at fault for a car accident and cite them with a violation of the City of Cleveland Ordinances if appropriate. The City of Cleveland codified ordinances can be found here. If you are not at fault for the car accident you are entitled to compensation for your injuries. Injuries can be serious as death, brain injury, broken bones or can be as simple as sore muscles or a backache. Although no injury is really simple and can get worse. Either way you are entitled to compensation and Cleveland car accident lawyer John Colan can help you get the compensation you deserve. In a Crash? Call Colan Fast.