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The Driver Accidents
In General
| If you are involved in an accident, no matter how minor, you must stop and give your identity to anyone else involved. Failure to do this is considered fleeing an accident and is punishable by a fine and jail time. |
| If you witness an accident, you must write down what you saw as objectively as possible. if it's an injury accident, you will need to wait for the police to arrive. If not, you can leave your phone/address/etc. (called "coordonnées" in French) with the people involved in case they need you. |
| if you come across an accident where the authorities are already helping, it's best that you not stop. If you arrive at an accident before any authorities, you must stop and render assistance. At the scene of an accident, you follow the principle of P-A-S (this spells a word in French, but it's somewhat less effective an acronym in English): Protect, Alert, Secourir (rescue). |
Protect The Scene Of The Accident
| The first thing you do at the scene of a fresh accident is to prevent the scene from getting any worse. Park your car where it won't risk another accident and won't hinder approaching emergency vehicles. Turn off (and disconnect the battery, if possible) the vehicles involved. Don't smoke (this one should be obvious, but we are in France, afterall). Mark the accident in both directions so other drivers don't run into anyone. During the day, you place an emergency triangle reflector 30 m uproad from the accident such that it can be seen 100 m. At night, you park a car with its headlights illuminating the scene. You can also use flashlights to warn other drivers. |
Alert Emergency Services
Call the authorities as soon as possible. Emergency phones are placed every 2 km on the autoroute and are free. Here are the emergency numbers you need to know:
| 15 |
Ambulance, SAMU |
| 17 |
Police |
| 18 |
Fire Truck ("les pompiers" in French) |
| 112 |
Single European emergency call number |
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When you call, you will need to supply the following info:
- The nature of the accident
- The number and state of the wounded
- The number and type of vehicles involved
- The exact location of the accident
- The circumstances: people trapped in cars, dangerous materials, risk of immersion in water, etc.
Do not hang up until told to do so.
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Render Aide
While waiting for the emergency vehicles, take care of any injured people without making them worse.
These are things to NOT do:
- Never give a drink to the injured, even water
- Never move an injured person or remove them from their vehicle unless there is immediate danger (fire, explosion, etc.)
- Never remove the helmet of a motorocycle rider
- Never transport the wounded in your car
These are things you MUST do:
- Comfort the wounded with reassuring words
- Cover the injured with a blanket or coat
- Loosen collars and/or seatbelts
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