Legal Review: Information About Suffolk County Car Accident Police Reports

After a car accident it is necessary to obtain a police report. In New York the police report is also known as a MV104a.  Without the police report your car will not be repaired and if your car is a total loss you will not be paid for it. Most importantly if you want to recover money for your pain and suffering you will need the police report to identify the responsible party(s) and their insurance companies.

Police reports from the Suffolk County Police Department

If the Suffolk County Police Department responded to the scene of your accident you will receive a “field report” from the officer at the scene. This one-page document lists the names of the parties involved and provides a central complaint number that you will use to obtain the complete police report.

In two to thirty days the complete police report will be ready. The finished police report must be completed by the responding officer and approved by his superior. Oftentimes the approval by the Desk Sergeant is the cause for delay in finishing the report. The Law Office of Carl Maltese often contacts the Desk Sergeant after five days to discuss the status of the report. The Law Office of Carl Maltese almost always is able to obtain their client’s police reports in two to six days.

Once the Suffolk County Police Department report is ready it can be obtained by one of the following ways:

a) On the internet from Lexis Nexis there is a charge of $20.00 for this service

b) In person at Suffolk County Police Department headquarters in Yaphank. The charge for this service is $1.00. The report will be at this location seven to ten days after LexisNexis has it. The report that you receive will be certified. This service is only available for accidents that occurred in the last eighteen months.

c) You can order a copy of the report by mail from Suffolk County Police Department headquarters in Yaphank. The charge for this service is $1.00. The report will be at this location seven to ten days after Lexis Nexis has it. You will receive your report in six to eight weeks. The report that you receive will be certified. This service is only available for accidents that occurred in the last eighteen months.

d) You can also obtain a certified copy of the report on the internet from the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles at https://dmv.ny.gov/dmv-records/how-order-and-access-motor-vehicle-accident-report. The charge for this service is $25.00.

In order to use the report in Court Proceedings it must be certified. The Law Office of Carl Maltese always obtains a certified police report for their client’s personal injury claims.

Using the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) to obtain your police report

Article 6 of the New York State Public Officers Law is known as the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL). This law allows people to request records from the government. In certain situations, such as an accident being reported the day after it occurred, the only way to obtain the Suffolk County Police Department report is to make a FOIL request. This request may be done by mail or on the internet. By looking at your field report the Law Office of Carl Maltese can usually discern if you need to make a FOIL request to obtain the complete police report.

Police Reports from other Agencies

There are other agencies that may respond to your Suffolk County car accident. Those include, New York State Police, Suffolk County Sheriff, Riverhead Police, Northport Village Police, Lloyd Harbor Police, Nissequogue Police, Asharoken Police, Amityville Police, Head of the Harbor Police, New York State Park Police, Stony Brook University Police and the MTA Police. The Law Office of Carl Maltese regularly obtains police reports from all of these agencies for their personal injury clients.

The Law Office of Carl Maltese will help you obtain your Police Report

Police reports for car accidents in Suffolk County oftentimes contain mistakes and incorrect information. The Law Office of Carl Maltese routinely works with police agencies to have their client’s police reports amended so they are accurate.

If you have been hurt in a car accident that occurred in Suffolk County and are having difficulty obtaining the police report contact the Law Office of Carl Maltese at (631) 543-8811 for a free consultation. At your free consultation we will be happy to answer any and all questions about car accident police reports in Suffolk County.