Concerns over insurance agent impartiality as cops prioritise serious crashes

Starting from September 15, police will only attend road accidents involving death or serious injuries, with insurance agents taking charge of minor incidents under a new road traffic accident investigation policy announced on Wednesday by Attorney General Dale Marshall.

At a press briefing to unveil the policy at the Henry Forde and David Simmons Legal and Judicial Complex, Marshall expressed full support for the change, highlighting the extensive time officers currently spend on road accidents, especially minor ones.

“Last year, there were about 6 900 traffic accidents, and in some years, we’ve seen almost 9 000,” the AG noted. “On average, it can take between 10 and sometimes as much as 20 man-hours for police to attend to a single accident scene. If you do the simple Maths, with 6 900 accidents last year, that’s 70 000 police man-hours just on traffic accidents.”

Marshall pointed out that given the shortage of police officers, the policy is a necessary transformation, allowing law enforcement to focus on more critical public safety issues. 

“We’re dealing with a deficit in terms of the boots we have on the ground, so we need to manage those resources more efficiently,” he explained.

The attorney general gave an assurance that police would still respond to accidents involving serious injuries, which include hospitalisations for fractures, concussions, internal injuries, or severe shock. But, he said, the majority of accidents, which do not result in prosecution, do not require police involvement.

Randy Graham, President of the General Insurance Association of Barbados.

“The super-abundant majority of cases don’t lead to prosecutions,” said the government’s chief law officer. “So those hours of policing time don’t make it to court and become just another statistic. At this juncture, the public needs to understand we’re not throwing them to the wolves.”

He added: “A serious injury is one where a person needs to be hospitalised . . . it’s important for police to come and safeguard that person’s interests. This is part of modernising The Barbados Police Service to better handle the serious issues affecting society.”

The General Insurance Association of Barbados has backed the move. President Randy Graham highlighted that insurance companies pay out between $85 million and $90 million annually for vehicle crashes. He noted that 90 per cent of these incidents are resolved without police reports, as they are settled between drivers and their insurers.

Graham said insurance agents have been trained to manage accident scenes, under police guidance at the Regional Police Training Centre. 

“The auto-rescuers and roadside assistance vehicles you see at accident scenes have received the necessary training,” he said. “They can handle situations where no serious injury is involved.”

But the head of the Barbados Road Safety Association (BRSA), raised concerns over the reliance on insurance agents, and called for the institution of an independent fact-finding body such as the police.

President of the Barbados Road Safety Association Roland Lowe.

Roland Lowe, himself a former police officer, acknowledged the strain on police resources but stressed the need for impartial officials at accident scenes to ensure unbiased investigations.

“You need that objective third party because the police have no vested interest in who is right or wrong in an accident,” Lowe told Barbados TODAY. “They are there to interpret the rules of the road and give their findings.”

Lowe suggested that the government should have considered an arbitration body consisting of independent, specially trained individuals, possibly including former police officers and insurance personnel. This body could offer impartial rulings on accident cases, he said.

“If the parties don’t agree with the arbitration findings, all the information could be forwarded to the court for a quick decision based on professional assessments,” Lowe proposed. 

shamarblunt@barbadostoday.bb