This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Salt Lake City Police Chief Chris Burbank says technology can ease the pain of reporting those frustrating fender-benders, and his department's website has an app for that.
The site (http://slcpd.com/contact-us/online-report/) offers an Online Reporting portal that not only allows citizens to streamline their insurance claims on minor traffic accidents, but also allows online reporting of harassing telephone calls, hit-and-runs, identity thefts, lost property, theft, vandalism and vehicle break-ins.
"During the first big snow day of December, there were 78 traffic accidents in the city, plus all the other calls for service," Burbank stated on Thursday "Accidents like these, where no one is injured, are a lower priority ... you can only imagine how long some of those motorists had to wait for an officer when many of them could have filed an online report at their convenience."
The online option allows drivers in crashes without injuries, or with combined damages of less than $1,500, to quickly get a case number — an essential element to getting insurance claims moving quickly.
Burbank said that in 2012, there were 3,500 non-reportable accidents in the city that could have been documented with the online reporting system, saving thousands of officer-hours spent in responding to such calls.
Those involved in traffic accidents without injuries still should call the non-emergency dispatch line at 801-799-3000. At that point, motorists can be offered a temporary case number in order to use the online reporting option. Each of those online reports are reviewed by an officer.
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