How can I get a police report amended?

Written police reports are the records used in determining fault and liability following automobile accidents and are therefore critical when it comes to who will be responsible for damages. These reports also preserve the facts of the case as well as the circumstances at the time of the accident along with information regarding the parties involved. These police reports are the first source of documentary evidence sought after when researching automobile accidents, including insurance companies, lawyers and those in the law enforcement field. However, since police officers are human, it is quite possible that some sort of error can be recorded in one of these reports. For this reason, in some cases having a police report amended is allowed, even when it occurs after the fact.

A police officer can easily make a simple error of fact in his report, like transposing the digits of a telephone number, confusing the color of a vehicle in an accident or recording the wrong make of the car. These simple types of errors are easily corrected. If an error of this type occurs in a police report, a person can contact the officer who recorded the information in the report and give him the correct information, along with evidence or proof of the true fact(s). The officer then attaches an addendum to his report along with an explanation of the error, or he might simply change the error on the actual report. This will depend upon the policy of his department.

Should the amendment a person desires be due to a discrepancy of opinion, not fact, then amending a police report can become somewhat more difficult. Should the individual disagree with details surrounding the accident or the description given by a witness to the accident, amending these kinds of differences are a completely different matter. A person may even disagree with the statement they gave the officer because of how he recorded it, or if the individual feels that his statement has been mischaracterized by the officer in some manner. In these cases, the police report itself will not be able to be changed. The only remedy available under these kinds of circumstances is for the person to write up their own report of what occurred in the accident or to write up an opinion of the circumstances involved and request that this be attached to the police report. Depending upon the value of the information you are giving, you may be able to talk the officer into adding his own supplement to the report based on your input.