If you’ve been involved in a car accident and the other driver fails to exchange details or you can’t find the other person who hit you after you got their licence details, there may be a way to locate their updated details through your solicitor.
In New South Wales it is an offence to leave an accident without exchanging information at the scene. Generally, the police don’t need to get involved unless someone is hurt, a vehicle needs to be towed, there is an indication of drink driving or drug driving or someone is overly aggressive.
Sometimes, people aren’t as honest as they should be and they might give you an out-of-date licence with an incorrect address or even leave the scene without giving you any details. If this happens you are entitled to contact the police or you can go to your solicitor.
What can a solicitor do to help?
The Roads and Maritime Service (‘RMS’) gives special provision to solicitors who require a person’s details for legitimate means and will provide these to a solicitor for a genuine legal purpose such as litigation or defending litigation in court. An administration fee is required by the RMS for copies of these records.
Once this form is filled out, it must be sent with proof of identity and the appropriate fee. The details will then be forwarded to the solicitor and appropriate action can be taken to recover the cost of repair from the at fault party.
A word of warning: These forms are only for use by legal practitioners. It is an offence to provide false information to a government agency and there could be severe consequences for this offence.
What if I don’t have a solicitor?
It is generally recommended that you seek legal advice for matters where you are uninsured and want to rely on the legal system to resolve a legitimate issue. With that said, this may not be an option for you. In these circumstances, you may lodge a GIPA request which is a formal request for release of information by a government body. These can take time and can be rejected for a number of reasons and care should be taken when filing these documents.
If you’ve found yourself in a situation like this give us a call on 1300 818 626 or contact us and we can help you with your insurance enquiry.
