A really good idea

One thing that most people know about L.A.-- it is a driver city. It is normal to spend hours in a car driving from place to place. With all the driving is the increased chance for car accidents. There are certain parts of the city that I avoid because they tend to be overpopulated with wealthy people in big SUVs who don't care about the traffic laws or anybody else on the road. I have been rear-ended several times since moving to this city and feel like a seasoned veteran at dealing with fender benders.

When I dropped my car off at the car mechanic today, we got to talking about car insurance and dealing with car accidents. He has had a lot of frustration dealing with the car insurance companies. As a result, he has developed a simple form that can be used for 'In case of accident'. The form contains space for the date/time/location, then information on the other car including the car's VIN number, year, make/model, car license, and license state. It then has space for the standard information of driver license number, state, name, insurance company, policy number, etc. Basically, he compiled all the information that an insurance company would need to complete a claim. If any of you are interested in a copy of the form just let me know and I can send it or post it online.

The genius of this ready-made accident form is the obviousness of the need for it. It's hard to think clearly after an accident sometimes. And sometimes it is even hard to find a sheet of paper to take down the other person's information. Having this form makes getting peoples' info a standardized process. I plan on keeping a copy of the form in my glove compartment so that I will be prepared when there is an accident.

BTW, the one item he stressed was to get the other car's VIN number. People sometimes get fake licenses or give the wrong telephone number, but police can usually trace a car's VIN number to the owner. If nothing else, get the other car's VIN number.

Happy motoring!