Philadelphia Police have new fender bender policy

Next time you’re involoved in a fender bender in Philadelphia, you may be asked to handle the situation without help from the police. Starting Monday, Philadelphia police will not respond to the most minor traffic accidents.

Next time you’re involved in a fender bender in Philadelphia, you may be asked to handle the situation without help from the police. Starting Monday, Philadelphia police will not respond to the most minor traffic accidents.

Those who call 911 at the scene of an accident will be asked if there are any injuries, whether vehicles can drive away safely, and whether any other property was damaged. If the answer to all three of these is no, the dispatcher will ask the motorist to simply file a report over the phone or at their local police district headquarters.

The change in policy is meant to free up officers to deal with more serious crime.

Triple-A approves of the policy, but Spokeswoman Jana Tidwell says drivers should be thorough about assessing the scene.

“If there is any doubt in the motorist’s mind that there might be something else involved here, we recommend that they ask for police to be dispatched,” says Tidwell.

Tidwell says drivers should be sure to get the other driver’s name, address, phone number, license number, and insurance information, along with the year, make, model, license plate number, and vehicle identification number of the other car.