I’ve been very lucky so far and have never had a car crash in Abu Dhabi, but I hear it happens to everyone sooner or later. If I do have an accident, I have no idea what I’m supposed to do – it would be really helpful to know what the procedure is. Can you help?
It’s certainly best to be prepared for these situations, although hopefully it won’t happen to you. The procedure for car accidents is quite straightforward here – since there are so many to be dealt with, it seems the police have it down to a fine art. First of all, if no one is hurt and vehicle damage is minor, you should move the vehicle to the side of the road to avoid blocking traffic. But if the accident was serious, or it is likely there’s going to be a dispute about whose fault the crash was, leave everything where it is. Then call 999 to report the accident to the police. You’ll be asked a series of questions on the phone about the accident, which will then be logged. At this point try to keep your answers as brief and factual as possible.
Saeed, a company associated with the police, manages all car accidents in the UAE. The operator at 999 will dispatch a traffic expert from Saeed, who should appear at the scene within 15 minutes. Have your vehicle registration card, driver’s licence and insurance papers ready for them. They will ask all the parties involved what happened and examine the scene before producing a report about who was at fault. If one of the parties involved doesn’t accept the conclusion, the matter is referred to the police station. But otherwise you’ll be given a report form with an accident reference number on it. If it was decided you were at fault, you will be given a pink form, and if you’re the innocent party it will be green – these are to allow you to have your vehicle repaired, because garages can’t repair accident damage without an approval form.
The accident report will be sent directly to the concerned insurance companies, which will start dealing with the compensation automatically. You can find the details yourself by visiting the Saaed website and punching in your accident number. In some cases, Saaed representatives will tell you you have to go to the police station for further questioning, and it is best to do this as soon as possible after the accident to avoid complications. If you were the one at fault, you’ll have to pay the accident fee, which is Dhs300 – you can do this at police stations too.
If you want further information, visit www.saaed.ae to find out more about Saaed and road accident procedures. For information about road safety in the UAE, including a helpful list of road safety rules, visit www.abudhabi.ae. And drive safely!
