A simplified scheme for registering road traffic accidents has long been practiced in Europe, where drivers independently and in a civilized manner solve all controversial issues on the roads, without resorting to the intervention of regulatory authorities. Yes, and in Russia the so-called "Europrotocol" began to operate back in 2009, but in practice, domestic car owners used it quite rarely.
In 2014, a number of provisions came into force (Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of 01.10.2014 No. 1002), which determined the procedure for providing the insurer with information about an accident recorded without police officers. These innovations have somewhat straightened the situation, but not in a significant way, and all due to the fact that many Russian motorists either simply did not even hear about the existence of the "Europrotocol", or do not dare to record a traffic accident in the absence of traffic police officers.
As such, the word "europrotocol" does not exist in Russian legislation, but they call it the process of "drawing up documents on an accident without the participation of authorized police officers" (Article 11.1 of the Federal Law of 25.04.2002 No. 40-FZ "On compulsory insurance of civil liability of vehicle owners funds "). It is possible to resort to his "services" only in a strictly limited number of cases, and for this a number of conditions must be met:
- There are no casualties on either side (this affects drivers, passengers and pedestrians);
- No more than two cars were involved in the accident;
- Both participants in the accident have a valid OSAGO policy in their hands, and are also entered into it;
- There is no disagreement between the participants in the accident regarding the circumstances of the accident and damage to the machines;
- The amount of damage caused does not exceed 50 thousand rubles (in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Moscow and Leningrad regions - for 400 thousand rubles).
If at least one of these points is not fulfilled, the participants in the accident must call the police and act according to the instructions of the employee. After that, the drivers must proceed to the least distant traffic police post or to the traffic police station on duty, where the final registration of the accident takes place.
If all of the above requirements are simultaneously feasible, and the damage to vehicles is small, then in the event of an accident, drivers must free the carriageway, especially if this interferes with the movement of other motorists, but having previously formalized the current situation according to the "European protocol".
In this case, it is necessary to act as follows: stop, put up an emergency sign, estimate the approximate amount of damage, take the necessary photos and videos (general plan of the incident, vehicle numbers, broken elements, etc.) and fill out the notification form attached to the OSAGO policy (as as a rule, it is transferred to the policyholder at the conclusion of the contract).
Immediately after the accident, its participants must take photos and videos, but no later than 60 minutes later. Moreover, in this case, drivers should capture:
- State registration plates of the vehicle of both road users, and if there are none, then identification markers (VIN);
- All damage to vehicles;
- The location of vehicles involved in an accident in relation to transport infrastructure facilities, houses or shops, on which the street name or house number should be clearly displayed.
The next step in registering an accident according to the "Europrotocol" is filling out an accident notification form. Moreover, one such document is filled in simultaneously by both participants in the accident (both on the front and on the back): one of them pays attention to column "A", and the second - to column "B".
First of all, drivers fill out the front of the notification, recording on it full information about the incident and its participants, about insurers and eyewitnesses, about the nature of visible damage (that is, absolutely all cells that have cells must be registered). After that, each of the participants in the accident certifies the notice with his two signatures, and in the future, the form is divided into two copies.
The reverse side of the accident notice is filled out individually by each of the drivers, and if there is not enough space on it, you can present the information on a blank sheet of paper, certifying it with the signatures of both participants in the accident.
After fixing the traffic accident and filling out the "Europrotocol" form, it will not be superfluous to make a copy of your copy - it may be required if the traffic police inspector stops on the road and starts asking questions about damages on the car.
When all the actions necessary to “draw up documents on a road traffic accident without the participation of authorized police officers” have been followed, the victim has the right to apply to the insurance company in order to receive payment for the car repair. This must be done within five working days. from the moment of the accident (clause 2 of Article 11.1 of the Federal Law No. 40-FZ of 25.04.2002 "On compulsory insurance of civil liability of vehicle owners"), providing the following list of documents:
- Traffic accident notification form;
- An application for direct compensation for losses completed in any form or according to the sample established by the insurer;
- An electronic medium containing information from the accident scene (for example, a memory card with a photo or video).
It should be noted, however, that the culprit of the accident has no right to repair his car within fifteen calendar days from the date of the traffic accident without a written settlement with the insurance company. If repairs need to be carried out earlier than the statutory deadline, then in this case he should provide the vehicle for inspection by the insurer and obtain permission.
When registering an accident under the "Europrotocol" there is one more nuance - when one of the participants in the accident has a CASCO policy, and the insurance company, according to its rules, does not pay compensation without certificates from the traffic police, then in this case, you still have to call the traffic police to the scene ...
The term for consideration of the application by the insurer is twenty calendar days after its receipt (clause 21 of Article 12 of Federal Law No. 40-FZ of 25.04.2002). The victim in an accident at the specified time must receive either a payment, or a referral to repair the car, or a refusal justified in writing. True, if the amount of damage to the "innocent" car eventually exceeded 50 thousand rubles, then the injured party has the right to demand compensation from the perpetrator of the accident.
Undoubtedly, but in theory, the idea of a “Europrotocol” demonstrates its obvious effectiveness: the possibility of multi-kilometer congestion, which has always been enough in Russian megacities, is eliminated as much as possible, and traffic police officers are also “unloaded”, dealing with really serious accidents on the road. But in practice, such an option for registration of an accident among Russian motorists is still not held in high esteem - our society, business and the law are not yet fully "ripe" before it.
