Georgia Accident Law

The follow are the Georgia Accident Code of Law published by the State of Georgia.

§ 40-6-270. Duty in accidents involving personal injury to or death of person or damage to vehicle


(a) The driver of any vehicle involved in an accident resulting in injury to or the death of any person or in damage to a vehicle which is driven or attended by any person shall immediately stop such vehicle at the scene of the accident or shall stop as close thereto as possible and forthwith return to the scene of the accident and shall:

(1) Give his name and address and the registration number of the vehicle he is driving;
 

(2) Upon request and if it is available, exhibit his operator's license to the person struck or the driver or occupant of or person attending any vehicle collided with; and
 

(3) Render to any person injured in such accident reasonable assistance, including the transporting, or the making of arrangements for the transporting, of such person to a physician, surgeon, or hospital for medical or surgical treatment if it is apparent that such treatment is necessary or if such transporting is requested by the injured person.
 

The driver shall in every event remain at the scene of the accident until fulfilling the requirements of this subsection. Every such stop shall be made without obstructing traffic more than is necessary.


(b) If such accident is the proximate cause of death or a serious injury, any person knowingly failing to stop and comply with the requirements of subsection (a) of this Code section shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than five years.


(c)(1) If such accident is the proximate cause of an injury other than a serious injury or if such accident resulted in damage to a vehicle which is driven or attended by any person, any person knowingly failing to stop or comply with the requirements of this Code section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and:

(A) Upon conviction shall be fined not less than $300.00 nor more than $1,000.00, which fine shall not be subject to suspension, stay, or probation, or imprisoned for up to 12 months, or both;
 

(B) Upon the second conviction within a five-year period of time, as measured from the dates of previous arrests for which convictions were obtained to the date of the current arrest for which a conviction is obtained, shall be fined not less than $600.00 nor more than $1, 000.00, which fine shall not be subject to suspension, stay, or probation, or imprisoned for up to 12 months, or both; and for purposes of this subparagraph, previous pleas of nolo contendere accepted within such five-year period shall constitute convictions; and
 

(C) Upon the third or subsequent conviction within a five-year period of time, as measured from the dates of previous arrests for which convictions were obtained to the date of the current arrest for which a conviction is obtained, shall be fined $1, 000.00, which fine shall not be subject to suspension, stay, or probation, or imprisoned for up to 12 months, or both; and for purposes of this subparagraph, previous pleas of nolo contendere accepted within such five- year period shall constitute convictions.
 

(2) For the purpose of imposing a sentence under this subsection, a plea of nolo contendere shall constitute a conviction.
 

(3) If the payment of the fine required under this subsection will impose an economic hardship on the defendant, the judge, at his sole discretion, may order the defendant to pay such fine in installments and such order may be enforced through a contempt proceeding or a revocation of any probation otherwise authorized by this Code section.
 

(d) Notwithstanding the limits set forth in any municipal charter, any municipal court of any municipality shall be authorized to impose the punishments provided for in this Code section upon a conviction of violating this Code section or upon conviction of violating any ordinance adopting the provisions of this Code section.


§ 40-6-271. Duty upon striking unattended vehicle


(a) The driver of any vehicle which collides with any vehicle which is unattended shall immediately stop and shall then and there either locate and notify the operator or owner of such vehicle of the name and address of the driver and owner of the vehicle striking the unattended vehicle or shall leave in a conspicuous place on the vehicle struck a written notice giving the name and address of the driver and the owner of the vehicle doing the striking.


(b) Any person who fails to comply with the requirements of subsection (a) of this Code section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.


§ 40-6-272. Duty upon striking fixtures upon highway


The driver of any vehicle involved in an accident resulting only in damage to a fixture legally upon or adjacent to a highway shall take reasonable steps to locate and notify the owner or person in charge of such property of such fact and of his name and address and of the registration number of the vehicle he is driving and shall, upon request and if available, exhibit his operator's license.


§ 40-6-273. Duty to make immediate reports of accidents


The driver of a vehicle involved in an accident resulting in injury to or death of any person or property damage to an apparent extent of $500.00 or more shall immediately, by the quickest means of communication, give notice of such accident to the local police department if such accident occurs within a municipality. If such accident occurs outside a municipality, such notice shall be given to the office of the county sheriff or to the nearest office of the state patrol.


§ 40-6-273.1. Law enforcement officer at scene of accident to instruct drivers to provide certain information to other parties


The law enforcement officer at the scene of an accident required to be reported in accordance with the provisions of Code Section 40-6-273 shall instruct the driver of each motor vehicle involved in the accident to report the following to all other parties suffering injury or property damage as an apparent result of the accident:

(1) The name and address of the owner and the driver of the motor vehicle;
 

(2) The license number of the motor vehicle; and
 

(3) The name of the liability insurance carrier for the motor vehicle or the fact that such driver has a certificate of self-insurance issued pursuant to Code Section 33-34-5.1.
 

§ 40-6-274. No duty to stop or make immediate report of certain accidents


Any other provision of this article or any other law to the contrary notwithstanding, the driver of any vehicle involved in a traffic accident in which there is no personal injury or in which no second party and no property of a second party is involved shall not have the duty to stop or immediately report such accident, and no such driver shall be prosecuted for his failure to stop or immediately to report such accident. This Code section shall not abrogate or affect a driver's duty to file any written report which may be required by the local law enforcement agency.


§ 40-6-275. Duty to remove vehicles involved in traffic accidents on expressways and multilane highways of state


(a) Any other provision of this article or any other law to the contrary notwithstanding, motor vehicles involved in traffic accidents and the drivers of such motor vehicles shall be subject to the provisions of this Code section.


(b) This Code section shall apply to motor vehicle traffic accidents which occur on the public roads of this state as defined in paragraph (24) of Code Section 32-1-3. Any violation of this Code section shall be punishable as a misdemeanor pursuant to Code Section 40-6-1.


(c) When a motor vehicle traffic accident occurs with no apparent serious personal injury or death, it shall be the duty of the drivers of the motor vehicles involved in such traffic accident, or any other occupant of any such motor vehicle who possesses a valid driver's license, to remove said vehicles from the immediate confines of the roadway into a safe refuge on the shoulder, emergency lane, or median or to a place otherwise removed from the roadway whenever such moving of a vehicle can be done safely and the vehicle is capable of being normally and safely driven, does not require towing, and can be operated under its own power in its customary manner without further damage or hazard to itself, to the traffic elements, or to the roadway. The driver of any such motor vehicle may request any person who possesses a valid driver's license to remove any such motor vehicle as provided in this Code section, and any such person so requested shall be authorized to comply with such request.


(d) The driver or any other person who has removed a motor vehicle from the main traveled way of the road as provided in subsection (c) of this Code section before the arrival of a police officer shall not be considered liable or at fault regarding the cause of the accident solely by reason of moving the vehicle pursuant to this Code section.


(e) This Code section shall not abrogate or affect a driver's duty to file any written report which may be required by a local law enforcement agency, but compliance with the requirements of this Code section shall not allow a driver to be prosecuted for his or her failure to stop and immediately report a traffic accident.


(f) This Code section shall not abrogate or affect a driver's duty to stop and give information in accordance with law, nor shall it relieve a police officer of his or her duty to render a report in accordance with law.


(g) Employees of the Department of Transportation, in the exercise of the management, control, and maintenance of the state highways, may require and assist in the removal from the main traveled way of roads on the state highway system of all vehicles incapacitated from any cause other than having been involved in a motor vehicle accident and of all vehicles incapacitated as a result of motor vehicle traffic accidents and of debris caused thereby when such motor vehicle accidents occur with no apparent serious personal injury or death, where such move can be accomplished safely by the drivers of the vehicles involved or with the assistance of a towing or recovery vehicle and will result in the improved safety or convenience of travel upon the road. However, a vehicle incapacitated as a result of a motor vehicle traffic accident with apparent serious personal injury or death may not be moved until the enforcement officer has made the necessary measurements and diagrams required for the initial accident investigation.


§ 40-6-276. Driver of wrecker truck to remove parts and glass from scene of wreck


(a) The driver of each wrecker truck towing away any vehicle from the scene of a wreck shall also take away all parts belonging to the vehicle which he is towing away, or, if they consist of small parts or broken glass, he shall clear the streets of said small parts or glass, unless the driver is ordered not to do so by the investigating police officer due to circumstances at the scene of the accident.


(b) Any person violating subsection (a) of this Code section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $100.00.


§ 40-6-277. Sheriffs to report upon deaths caused by accidents


Every sheriff and chief executive officer of a law enforcement agency other than a sheriff shall, on or before the tenth day of each month, report in writing to the Department of Transportation the death of any person within their jurisdiction during the preceding calendar month as the result of a traffic accident known to them, giving the time and place of the accident and the circumstances relating thereto, in the manner specified by the commissioner of transportation.


§ 40-6-278. Uniform reports and procedures


The commissioner of transportation shall prescribe, by rule, uniform motor vehicle accident reports and reporting procedures which shall be used by all police officers, whether state, county, or municipal. The rules shall be adopted in accordance with Chapter 13 of Title 50, the "Georgia Administrative Procedure Act." The rules may require one type of report and reporting procedure for motor vehicle accidents in which property damage alone is involved and another type of report and reporting procedure for motor vehicle accidents involving personal injury or death. The commissioner may, by rule, require additional investigation or reports in case of serious bodily injury or death.


§ 40-6-279. Renumbered as § 40-6-278 by Laws 1990, p. 2048, § 5

 

Home | About Us | Contact Us
Automobile Accident | Truck Accident | Motorcycle Accident | Wrongful Death
Georgia Accident Law

We represent the following areas:

Cities

Counties

© 2007 The Law Office of Trey Phillips, LLC. All rights reserved.