The key facts

  • Leaving the scene of an accident carries the risk of license suspension for up to a year and a half
  • A European accident report is possible under four conditions: two vehicles, valid OSAGO policies, no injuries and no disagreements
  • Before clearing the cars from the roadway, photo and video recordings must be made from all angles

Punishment for leaving the scene of an accident

Leaving the scene of a traffic accident can lead to suspension of a driver's license for up to a year and a half — even if the accident is minor and no one was injured. Lawyer Alexander Manko reported this in an interview with the publication 'Abzats'.

Conditions for filing a European accident report

According to Manko, the legal way to leave the scene of the incident is to file a European accident report (evropotokol). For this, four conditions must coincide simultaneously: only two vehicles are involved in the accident, both drivers have valid OSAGO policies, no one was injured and no damage was caused to third parties' property, and there are no disagreements between the participants about fault. If there is a dispute over fault, the circumstances must be documented through the 'Gosuslugi Avto' app.

Documenting the circumstances before clearing the cars

If all conditions are met, the cars can be removed from the roadway if they obstruct traffic. However, before doing so, the lawyer recommends making detailed photo and video recordings from all angles so that road signs, road markings and the cars' license plates are captured in the frame.

Qualification depends on the severity of the consequences

Earlier, Olga Konstantinova, founder and head of the legal agency 'Kontanta Konsalt', noted that the qualification of leaving the scene of an accident depends on the severity of the consequences. If there are no injuries or the harm to health is assessed as not serious, Part 2 of Article 12.27 of the Administrative Offenses Code applies, and the case is handled through administrative proceedings.