Whenever you are in a car accident, whether you intend to file a legal claim or not, you should always get a copy of your accident report.
The report is the state’s official record of what happened, so you should know what it says.
On one hand, if you plan to file a legal claim, your Aurora, CO, accident report will help you to establish fault and plan your legal claim with your attorney.
On the other hand, if you don’t plan to file a legal claim, your accident report could provide you with an indication as to whether or not the other party involved in the accident will file a legal claim against you.
Whatever the case is, it is critical that you get a copy of your Aurora police accident report.
Accident reports are often administrated at the city or county level. As a result, the protocol for obtaining accident reports often differs between jurisdictions.
The process for obtaining copies of Aurora accident reports, for example, is different from the process in Denver.
At Tenge Law Firm, LLC, we are here to help. Read on for more information on obtaining a copy of your Aurora accident report.
Do All Accidents Have an Accident Report?
The vast majority of car accidents that happen in Colorado will have a related accident report. This is because accident reports are a legal requirement for most Colorado accidents.
Drivers in Colorado are required to immediately report any accident to local law enforcement when any property damage occurs, or when any personal injury occurs.
Practically every car accident causes some type of injury or property damage, even if minor. Failure to report an accident is punishable as a class two misdemeanor traffic offense.
The penalty includes up to a $300 fine, up to 90 days in jail, or both.
If it appears as though there is property damage of more than $1,000, or someone suffers an injury, law enforcement has a legal obligation to file an accident report.
Similarly, if any party to an accident fails to provide proof of insurance, law enforcement must file a police report.
If the accident you are in does not meet these qualifications, you can still ask for a police report. Law enforcement is legally obligated to file such a report if any party to an accident requests it.
Thus, Aurora Colorado accident reports exist for the vast majority of Aurora car accidents.
Getting a Copy of Your Accident Report in Aurora, CO
Getting a hold of a copy of your accident report isn’t too much of a hassle. Of course, who you get your accident report from will differ based on which law enforcement agency responds to your accident.
If your accident occurs within Aurora city limits, the Aurora Police Department will have your Aurora accident report on file.
Similarly, if your accident occurs on unincorporated county land or on a Colorado freeway, the local county sheriff’s office or the Colorado State Patrol will have your report.
There are three ways to obtain copies of Aurora accident reports. Either:
- Through the mail;
- In person; or
- Online.
The protocol for requesting your accident report differs depending on how you choose to make a request. We will explain each of these three methods.
Through the Mail
First, you can get a copy of your Aurora accident report through the mail. To do so, you need to download, print, and fill out a record request form.
You can find the request form by clicking the “Request a Police Report” button on the Aurora government’s “Get a Police Report” webpage. Otherwise, this “Request a Police Report” link will take you to the form directly.
To fill out the form, you will need to provide the following information:
- Your name;
- Your contact information;
- The date, time, and location of your accident;
- The name and date of birth of anyone involved;
- The report number; and
- Your relation to the accident in question.
If you need help finding any required information, you can call the Aurora Police Records Unit at 303-739-6320 for assistance.
Once you fill out the form, you can mail it, with payment, to Aurora Police Department; Attn: Records Section; 15001 East Alameda Parkway; Aurora, CO 80012.
In Person
You can also make your request in person. Requesting your Aurora accident report in person is helpful if you need help gathering all of the necessary information or filling out the form.
You will need the same information as you would for a mail-in request. To make such a request, visit the Aurora Police Department’s Records division between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. from Monday through Friday.
The address is the same as noted above.
Online
Requesting your Aurora accident report online is similar to requesting it through the mail. First, download the same form you would use for a mail-in request.
Then, either fill the form out on your computer or print it, fill it out, then scan it to your computer. Finally, email the completed form to APDPublicRecordsRequest@auroragov.org.
The police department will contact you for payment within the following 30 days.
Paying for Your Accident Report
No matter which method you choose, the cost is the same. The first 10 pages of a report will cost $7.55, plus $.025 per additional page.
To pay for your request you can use cash, check, credit, or debit card over the phone or in person.
If you need to fill out a personal check for the fee, the recipient should be “City of Aurora.” The City of Aurora warns that the turnaround for information requests, including Aurora, CO, accident reports, can take approximately 60 days.
Once You Have Your Aurora Colorado Accident Report
Once you have your Aurora accident report and are ready to file a legal claim, contact us at Tenge Law Firm.
At Tenge Law Firm we have helped Coloradoans recover more than $50 million in damages in the last seven years alone.
In one recent case, we were able to recover more than $1.1 million for our client. Our priority is giving our clients the best legal services possible.
To this end, we have hundreds of success stories and 5-star reviews of our practice. For more information on how we have helped our prior clients, check out our case results and client reviews pages.
Don’t wait to get the claims process started.
Instead, call us at Tenge Law Firm today for your free consultation!