Two Sources of Video Evidence to Prove a Hit and Run Occurred

If you have been involved in a hit and run crash, evidence to prove what actually occurred, who the other parties are and who is at fault become an imperative part of a claim. Often one of the biggest challenges we face with hit an run’s is the lack of the above evidence. People often forget key details or their are no witnesses in the first place. When clients suffer in hit and run cases, we often hear the question:

“I know I was hit by a car. There was no witnesses and I can’t remember what happened. The police don’t believe me. How do I prove who did it?”

Sometimes, where available, the answer lies in camera footage. And our guide on how to access this footage is best described through this short 5 minute story.

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Let me tell you about James….

James is a 32 year old Site Foreman in Brisbane, Queensland. He lives with his wife, Anna and 3 year old daughter in Morningside. He loves fishing and goes for trip at least every month. Early one Saturday morning, James was driving to Tweed River to meet his mates for a day of fishing. He jumped in the car just before 5am, in an effort to beat the masses to the river, and hit the road. As James drove through an intersection another car ran a red light and clipped the back of his ute. James went spinning and was smacked up against a light post. James had been knocked out and when he came to he was being attended to by a dog walker who had called the ambulance. The ambulance and police arrived on scene. A paramedic collared James’ neck and placed him carefully on the stretcher, suspecting a spinal injury. Meanwhile a police officer was asking James if he knew what had happened. James wasn’t able to tell them much, stating…

“I didn’t see a thing. It came out of nowhere.”

James was bundled into the ambulance and on his way to hospital. The paramedic told James…

“Mate looks like you’ll be having some time off. Hope you have good income protection.”

James replied…

“Nope – I have no income protection. And I am a contractor so no paid leave either. I am screwed. There is no way that I am going to afford the house the misses wants now either. She is going to be so mad.”

It was then that the paramedic suggested…

“You know you can make an insurance claim. It’s really easy. But it would be easier if you had proof of who hit you – like the red light camera footage on that intersection.”

Retrieving the footage from the Red Light or Fixed Speed camera is very easy. You simply need to fill out the correct form and submit it to the appropriate body. A guide on how to do this is available below. MCW Legal is part of a nation law firm that are specialists in income replacement law as well as tax, superannuation and property related issues. We help people like James when they involved in a hit and run with no witnesses by giving them this quick guide on applying for access to red light, fixed speed and CCTV footage. While recovering at home from his accident, James downloaded and followed our guide on how to access the red light camera footage at the intersection where his collision occurred. He was able to pass that information on to the police and they located the owner of the vehicle, a white Subaru Impreza. James used the footage to prove what occurred when raising a claim to replace his lost earnings. This evidence prove pivotal in his case. Had James not gathered evidence to support his claim, it is likely that he would not have been successful in replacing his lost income and his family’s dream of ever owning a property would have been just that – a dream. 18 months on and James was back with his mates finishing, telling them…

“We were able to bring a claim against the driver of the car thanks to that red light camera footage. Anna and I can now afford to buy that house we were looking at in Coorparoo.”