Our attorneys help victims of car accidents collect evidence and bring claims for their injuries. One common area of concern for drivers is police reports, and how to get a copy of them for their crash.
Generally, you do not need to get a copy on your own. You do, however, have to fill out a report of your own. If you do want to get a copy, you may be able to get one through online request forms from the Tinley Park PD or the Illinois State Police.
Call Rhatigan Law Offices’ Tinley Park personal injury lawyers at (312) 598-0014 today for a free case review.
How Do You Get a Police Report for a Crash in Tinley Park?
Getting a police report in Illinois often means looking for “Driver Exchange” or “Driver’s Information Exchange” information from the local PD or state police.
Online
The Tinley Park website has a driver exchange form that requires your name, phone number, email address, and Crash Report Number. You should be able to get this number from the officer who responded to your crash.
The Illinois State Police also have online report requests on their website.
By Mail
You can potentially request a report by mail, but there are no instructions from the police department about how to do so. Contact them for direct information.
The Illinois State Police website has instructions for getting a police report by mail.
In Person
The Tinley Park Police Department website says that the Records Department is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for copies of police reports and Freedom of Information Act requests, potentially allowing you to just go to the police department if you want to request your report in person.
Does a Crash Victim Need to Get a Police Report?
Generally, no. Our lawyers can obtain a copy of the crash report in your case for you if we need it.
However, drivers in Illinois are required to fill out a report. This is part of the Driver’s Information Exchange. Our attorneys can help you with this, but you can also fill this out online.
What is Contained in a Police Report for a Crash?
Crash reports often have helpful information our Chicago car accident lawyers can use in investigating your crash and trying to hold the other driver at fault. This includes, but is not limited to, the following:
Diagram
The police officer usually has a section in the report where they can draw a diagram of the crash. No one expects them to be artists, but this can help show the position of the cars within the street or intersection, showing whether the crash was a front-end, rear-end, or side-impact crash.
Info on People Involved
The officer should record the names and contact information of everyone involved in the crash, from drivers to passengers to witnesses. We can use this to follow up with them about claims and witness statements.
Info on Cars Involved
The report should also record what cars were involved, including the make, model, color, and information about the damage sustained in the crash.
Injuries
The report should also record any injuries. The officer will often follow up after you receive medical care to learn more about the injuries, rather than going off of what was treated at the scene. However, the report may just say the injuries were “treated at scene,” or the person was “taken to hospital,” with no further elaboration.
Tickets
If the officer issued any tickets, they will say so in the report. This is common in DUI crashes where the officer can verify the wrongful conduct. Officers rarely rely on secondhand information – e.g., your report that the other driver ran a red light – to issue tickets unless they have their own proof.
Narrative Section
The officer will also have a section narrating what they observed as they came upon the crash scene and talked to the witnesses. This will typically include secondhand reports about what the drivers said happened and quotes from various parties and witnesses.
Can You Get an Unredacted Report in Illinois?
Typically, car accident reports in Illinois are redacted. This means they have a lot of the personal information about those involved blacked out.
To get a full copy with the names and info included, you usually need to submit a court order from a judge with the request for the report. Our lawyers can try to obtain this for you if needed.
Can You Use a Police Report as Evidence in a Car Accident Lawsuit?
Typically, no. Illinois law specifically bars police reports from being used as evidence.
This means that you cannot introduce the records as proof of what happened. Besides, the officer usually prepares the evidence based on secondhand information; they do not typically see the crash happen. Even if we could use it as evidence in court, it would not be particularly reliable.
How Can You Use a Police Report for a Car Accident Case in Tinley Park?
Instead, we can use reports as a research tool. This allows us to find the names and contact info for drivers and witnesses. If you were knocked out at the scene or taken immediately to the hospital where you could not collect contact info, this might be a great way to find information.
We may even be able to get this from the police officer without having to actually get a full copy of the police report.
Can You Ask the Officer for a Copy of the Report?
Police officers might be willing to relay information between people involved in the crash, such as when you have to go straight to the hospital and you do not know who hit you. However, they are unlikely to skip the official procedures required and just give you a copy of the report; you typically have to request it through the proper channels.
Call Our Tinley Park Car Accident Lawyers Today
Call (312) 598-0014 for a free case review with the Tinley Park car accident lawyers at Rhatigan Law Offices.
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