Collision Reporting Center opens in Roanoke, Virginia
The first U.S. Collision Reporting Center (CRC) opened September 15 in Roanoke, Virginia. The grand opening ceremony took place at the CRC located at 631 Abney Road, with many local police, government and business representatives present.
The City of Roanoke and Roanoke County governments approved the operation of the Collision Reporting Center by Accident Support Services International Ltd.
Drivers in Roanoke City and County involved in collisions will call 911. An officer will be dispatched to the scene. The officer will assess the situation, collect driver information and determine whether the incident meets the criteria for reporting to the CRC, sending those drivers to the Center to complete the report. Collisions which end up at the reporting center will be those with property damage of any amount where the vehicles are driveable. Drivers must visit the CRC within 48 hours of the collision to complete their reports. Police will continue to complete on-scene reports in the event that there are injuries, damage to public property, hazardous goods or of the vehicles require a tow.
“We want to get cars and people out of the roadway and handle reporting faster in a separate, safer place,” said Roanoke County Police Chief Howard Hall. “The idea here is to create a convenience for people.”
Staff at the Roanoke Accident Support Services will assist drivers in completing their collision report, help them to contact their family or insurance broker and company, speeding up the claims process and helping in the prevention of insurance fraud. Insurance companies fund the CRC and the program operates at no cost to Police or the public.
Police time saved in the collision reporting process assists in the reallocation of officers to higher priority calls for service in the community, and information from the ASSI’s CROMS (Collision Reporting and Occurrence Management System) also allows Police to target enforcement for increased road safety.
Roanoke Police Lt. Jeffrey Newman told the Roanoke Times that it will be a culture change for officers and drivers, but he believes the CRC will be a valuable resource. “Drivers are saving time, and we’re trying to same time so we can better spend it on preventing crime and catching serious offenders.”