After all of this, contact your insurance company and get your car towed if it is not drivable. The six steps below explain what to do after a car accident in Edmonton, one at a time.
Step 1: Make Sure Everyone Is Safe
The first step after a car accident in Edmonton is to check on people. Start with yourself, then your passengers, then the people in the other vehicle. Don't move anyone who's seriously injured unless they're in immediate danger.
Call 911 if:
- someone is seriously injured
- the scene is dangerous, like a fire or leaking fuel
- you think a driver is impaired, or a crime is taking place
Call the police non-emergency line, 780-423-4567, if:
- any driver is taken to hospital
- a pedestrian or cyclist is hurt
- the road is blocked
- private, city or highway property is damaged
- a commercial vehicle over 4,500 kg is involved
Step 2: Move Your Car If It's Safe
If your car still drives and nobody is badly hurt, the Government of Alberta advises pulling it to the side of the road, out of traffic.
Leave the vehicles where they are if someone is seriously injured or you suspect an impaired driver, because police will need to see the scene untouched.
Won't the car move? Turn on your hazard lights and set out warning triangles if you carry them. Get your passengers off the road to a safe spot. Never stand between two vehicles, or behind one, to look at the damage.
Winter tip: On the Anthony Henday or Whitemud Drive, ice means traffic needs far more room to stop. Get as far from the driving lanes as you safely can. If your car slid into a ditch or a snowbank, don't try to rock it free. That's a job for winch-out and ditch recovery.
Step 3: Exchange Information and Take Photos
Get these details from every other driver involved:
- full name and address
- driver's licence number
- licence plate number
- insurance company and policy number (from their financial responsibility card)
- year, make, model and colour of the vehicle
- the registered owner's name and address, if that's someone else
Note the exact location or the nearest cross streets. If anyone saw the crash, ask for their name and phone number.
Then photograph both cars from a few angles, every licence plate, and the scene. Get the lanes, signs and any snow or ice in the shot.
Stay polite, but don't sign any statement or agree to pay anyone at the scene. Insurers work out fault later.
Hit a parked car? Leave a note somewhere easy to spot, like under the wiper. It must include your name, address, licence number and plate number. That's a legal duty under Alberta's Traffic Safety Act, as EPS (Edmonton Police Service) explains.
Step 4: Report It at an Edmonton Collision Centre
When the total damage to all vehicles is $5,000 or more, you report a collision in Edmonton at an Edmonton Collision Reporting Centre, not at a police station. There are two of them. Skipping it can cost you a $405 fine.
The centres are run by Accident Support Services International under an agreement with the Edmonton Police Service. We're a tow company, not the centre. A reporting centre is where your police report gets filed.
The two locations are:
- North: 15750 116 Ave NW, 780-452-1531
- South: 5805 87A St NW, 587-758-9427
What to bring: your driver's licence, vehicle registration and insurance documents. You have to report with your vehicle in the city where the crash happened.
The report matters for your repair too. Alberta body shops can't do collision repairs over $5,000 on a car without a damage sticker, and you get that sticker by reporting.
Step 5: Arrange a Tow If the Car Can't Be Driven
Unless police direct the tow, the choice of tow company is yours. The tow company can also bring you and your vehicle straight from the scene to the reporting centre.
When you call Maverick Towing & Recovery for accident towing in Edmonton, we'll ask where the car is, its year, make and model, and whether it rolls and steers. Those answers help us choose the right way to move it.
Step 6: Call Your Insurance Company
Call your insurer as soon as you can, even if the crash wasn't your fault. Follow up the call in writing, and get a repair estimate before any work starts.
You also get to pick your body shop. Alberta rules say your insurer can't require a specific one.
FAQs About Reporting a Crash in Edmonton
Do I have to report a car accident in Edmonton?
Not every time. If the combined damage is under $5,000 and nothing on the 911 or non-emergency lists applies, contact your insurer. Not sure what the damage adds up to? Get an estimate at a body shop. One exception: damage to public property, such as a light pole or guardrail, must be reported to the police right away, even if it is under $5,000.
Can I report a collision online in Edmonton?
You can start it online. Go to reportacollision.accsupport.com and you'll get a reference number. You still need to visit a centre within 24 hours to finish. Your answers load into the kiosk there, so the visit goes faster.
What are the Edmonton Collision Reporting Centre hours?
Both reporting centres are open Monday to Saturday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. They're closed on statutory holidays.
Do the steps change in winter?
What to do after a car accident in Edmonton stays the same in winter, with one useful exception from EPS. If the roads are bad and your car is safe to drive without a tow, you can visit a reporting centre once conditions have settled.
What if the other driver won't share their details?
Call the non-emergency line at 780-423-4567. Alberta law requires every driver in a collision to give their details in writing when asked. Don't argue or follow them. Write down their plate, vehicle and direction of travel, and snap a photo if you can do it safely.
Need an Accident Tow in Edmonton?
Stuck at the scene with a car that won't go anywhere? Call our accident towing team at 825-888-5533. Maverick Towing & Recovery Ltd is locally owned and available 24/7. Tell us where you are and where the car should go, whether that's home, a storage yard or the body shop you've chosen.