Police reports contain a lot of helpful information, which is why insurance companies and lawyers often want to see the report when handling a car accident case. However, the information in them is sometimes unreliable because it is usually compiled second-hand by an officer who did not actually witness the accident.
The information in a police report can be used against you in a car accident case by insurance companies when analyzing a claim. However, the information in a police report might be barred under certain evidentiary rules when it comes to using it against you in court. Police reports are generally admissible as evidence, but the statements within the report might be hearsay within hearsay, barring them from being used.
For help with a car accident case, call our Georgia car accident attorneys at Howe Law today at (844) 876-4357.
Do Insurance Companies Use Police Reports to Deny Claims in Georgia?
Insurance companies often ask for police reports when a claim is brought to them. They can use these reports in many ways, and they will certainly color their overall concept of how the crash happened and who caused it. Reports may even be used to deny your claim.
Car accident cases filed through insurance are paid by the at-fault driver’s insurance in Georgia. This means that it is up to a hostile insurance company to determine whether or not they will shell out a lot of money to you after their driver hits you. That means they will be looking for any excuses they can legally use to deny your case or reduce the damages.
A police report might give the insurance company exactly what it needs to deny your case if the report is unclear about what happened or who caused the crash, let alone if it actually says you were responsible.
Our Rome, GA car accident lawyers can provide other evidence that might outweigh the report’s findings, but there is no requirement that the insurance company weigh that evidence as more powerful. Ultimately, we might need to take the case to court before a neutral judge and jury to decide the facts instead.
Can Judges and Juries Use Police Accident Reports in Car Accident Lawsuits in Georgia?
Whether or not a police report can be used against you in court depends heavily on why it is being used and whether it is admissible or not. It also depends on what part of the report the party is trying to enter into evidence.
Are Police Reports Admissible?
Generally, any statements made outside of court are blocked from being admitted into evidence if they are being used to prove the truth of the statement’s assertions. For example, if a witness said at the scene of the crash that the defendant ran a red light and hit the plaintiff, that statement would be hearsay if it was entered to prove the defendant was at fault. The plaintiff should instead find that witness and call them to the stand.
Police reports are themselves statements written out of court, so they qualify as hearsay under Georgia Rule of Evidence 801 and would be blocked from being admitted as evidence under Rule 802. However, Rule 803 contains exceptions. The records exception under 803(8) allows police reports to be used in civil injury cases.
There are some caveats here, however. First, this allows in the report, but not any hearsay within hearsay contained within the report, such as the above example of a quotation from a witness. Second, the report can only be used if the information was observed by the officer. Third, the information must be trustworthy, or else it can be blocked.
Is the Officer’s Opinion Admissible?
Generally speaking, police officers try to leave off an ultimate opinion about who caused the crash. Reports are supposed to be neutral explanations of who was involved and whatnot, not the decision on who was at fault. That is instead left to courts.
As such, the Rule of Evidence 701 usually blocks people from giving their opinion during testimony. It also would block written opinions, such as a police report, from being used to answer the ultimate question of fault. However, if the police officer can be certified as an expert on accident reconstruction or something like that, their report might be admissible as an expert opinion. However, it is rare that the report happens to meet every element of being based on the officer’s direct observations, containing an opinion on the ultimate question, and being prepared by an officer qualified as an expert who applied the proper scientific standards when writing up their analysis in the police report.
Second-Hand Information in Police Reports
As mentioned, quotes from witnesses written down in the report are usually hearsay within hearsay. The only way a report meets the record exception’s requirements is if the officer actually observed what they wrote down, such as by looking at the cars and writing down their license plates or looking at a driver’s ID to see who was involved.
If parts of the report – such as the recitation of facts – are based on what other people told the officer, then they should be barred as hearsay within the admissible report. Similarly, quotes that the officer wrote down should be barred as well. The parties are expected to call the witnesses to the stand to testify instead of using their statements from the report as evidence.
However, statements by the opposing party can be used, as they are excluded from the definition of hearsay.
Other Ways a Police Report Can Hurt Your Car Accident Case in Georgia
As mentioned, police reports might contain statements you made at the scene of the crash. Statements you personally made are left out of the definition of hearsay. Thus, if you admitted fault to the police officer, the report will say so, and that can be entered as evidence.
Additionally, reports might contain statements you made at the scene that might contradict what you say on the stand. Reports can also be used to contradict you this way, weakening your testimony.
Call Our Car Accident Lawyers in Georgia Today
If you were hit by a car, call Howe Law’s Atlanta car accident lawyers for help at (844) 876-4357.
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