What To Do After a Car Accident — Step-by-Step Guide

Your first priority is preventing further harm. Turn on your hazard warning lights immediately. Put on your high-visibility vest before leaving the vehicle — this is legally required in most European countries, including Austria, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain. Place the warning triangle at a safe distance: at least 150 meters on highways and motorways, 50 to 100 meters on rural roads, and approximately 50 meters in urban areas. Check whether anyone has been injured. If there are injuries, call the European emergency number 112 immediately. This number works in every EU country and connects you to local emergency services. Provide first aid to the extent you are trained and able — in many European countries, failure to render assistance is a criminal offense. Do not move injured persons unless there is an immediate, life-threatening danger such as a vehicle fire. Keep injured persons warm and calm until professional help arrives. If the accident involves only property damage and all occupants are uninjured, move the vehicles off the road if possible to avoid obstructing traffic and creating further hazards.

Whether you must call the police depends on the country and the severity of the accident. As a general rule across Europe, calling the police is mandatory when any person has been injured, when there is significant property damage beyond the vehicles involved (such as damage to buildings, guardrails, or traffic signals), when you cannot establish the identity or insurance details of the other driver, when you suspect the other driver is under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or when the other driver leaves the scene without exchanging information. For accidents involving only minor property damage where both parties are present and cooperative, a police response is generally not required. In this situation, the jointly completed accident report serves as sufficient documentation. However, it is worth noting that police requirements vary by country. In Italy, for example, the police must be called for any accident on a highway. In some Eastern European countries, a police report is required for all accidents regardless of severity. When in doubt, calling the police is always the safer choice. A police report can also be helpful if disputes arise later about the circumstances of the accident.

Thorough documentation at the accident scene is the foundation of a successful insurance claim. Use your smartphone to photograph the overall accident scene from at least four directions to show the road layout, traffic signs, lane markings, and the relative positions of the vehicles. Take close-up photos of the damage to each vehicle from multiple angles, including shots that show the transition between damaged and undamaged areas. Photograph any skid marks, debris, or road damage. If visibility, weather, or road conditions contributed to the accident, document those as well. Collect the following information from the other driver: full name and address, driver's license number and issuing country, vehicle license plate number, vehicle make, model, and color, insurance company name and policy number. If there are witnesses, ask for their names and phone numbers. Record the date, exact time, and precise location of the accident. If your phone has GPS, save your current coordinates. Note the weather conditions, road surface condition, and lighting. All of this information will be needed for the accident report and for your insurance claim.

The information exchange between the parties is not optional — it is a legal requirement in virtually every European country. At minimum, you must exchange your name and address, your vehicle registration details, and your insurance information. In practice, you should also record driver's license details and note whether the driver is the registered vehicle owner. The most efficient way to handle the information exchange is to fill out the accident report together. The European Accident Report form is specifically designed to capture all required data from both parties in a structured format. When you use the digital accident report on unfallbericht.at, both drivers enter their information on their own devices simultaneously, reducing the chance of errors from misheard names or illegible handwriting. If the other driver refuses to provide their details, note their license plate number and any identifying information you can observe. Call the police in this situation, as the refusal to exchange information may constitute a legal violation. Take photos of the other vehicle and its license plate as a backup.

The accident report is the single most important document for your insurance claim. It is the jointly agreed record of what happened, signed by both parties at the scene. Without it, claims processing is slower, more contentious, and more likely to result in a dispute. Fill out the accident report as soon as the scene is secured and any necessary emergency calls have been made. While details are fresh in everyone's memory, record the circumstances using the standardized 17-point checklist, draw the accident sketch, mark the damage locations on both vehicles, and have both parties sign. Using the digital accident report on unfallbericht.at makes this process significantly faster and more reliable. The app guides you through every required field, the GPS auto-detects your location, the AI sketch tool helps you draw the accident scene accurately, and both parties can work on the report simultaneously in their own language. The finished PDF is available for download immediately after signing.

Report the accident to your insurance company as soon as possible. Most insurance contracts across Europe require notification within one week, though some policies specify shorter deadlines for comprehensive coverage claims. Failing to report within the contractual deadline can jeopardize your claim. Your insurance company will need the completed accident report (the PDF from unfallbericht.at is ideal), photographs of the damage to all vehicles involved, a police report if one was filed, a repair cost estimate from a qualified body shop, and any witness statements you collected. Submit the accident report first, as this gives your insurer the information needed to open the claim. Follow up with photos and repair estimates as you obtain them. With the digital accident report, you can email or share the PDF directly from your phone minutes after the accident. Do not authorize repairs before your insurance company has had the opportunity to inspect the damage or approve the repair estimate. Unauthorized repairs may not be covered.

After a car accident, follow these steps in order: secure the scene with hazard lights, vest, and warning triangle. Call 112 if anyone is injured. Document the scene with photos and collect the other driver's details. Fill out the accident report together. Inform your insurance company within one week. The most important thing is to stay calm, document everything thoroughly, and avoid admitting fault at the scene. Use the digital accident report on unfallbericht.at to ensure you capture all required information quickly and accurately.

Admitting fault at the scene is the most common and most damaging mistake. Saying "I'm sorry, it was my fault" can be used against you during the claims process. Liability is determined by the insurance companies based on the documented facts, not by the drivers at the scene. Leaving the accident scene without exchanging information is a criminal offense in most European countries, even for minor property damage. If you cannot find the other driver (for example, in a parking lot incident), leave your contact details on the windshield and report the incident to the police. Failing to document the accident is another frequent error. Drivers who rely on verbal agreements or assume the damage is too minor to bother with often regret it when hidden damage is discovered during repair or when the other party changes their account of what happened. Starting vehicle repairs before your insurer has approved them can result in the costs not being covered. Always obtain your insurance company's authorization first. Missing the reporting deadline is a procedural mistake with serious consequences. Most policies require notification within seven days. Set a reminder if you cannot report immediately.