COMPANY drivers should not automatically accept the blame for road traffic accidents, but submit contested claims to professional accident investigation.

Accident Reconstruction Consultants, a new service launched by driver training organisation Drive Alive, claims companies and insurers are wasting millions of pounds every year by failing to investigate accidents properly.

Blame in the majority of accidents is attributed on the basis of the insurance claims forms filled in by the parties involved, a system which ARC argues is superficial and often inaccurate. ARC uses scientific means to establish what truly happened in an accident, and provides evidence which can be used in court.

All its investigators are former police officers, who use police methods to reconstruct accidents. Their backgrounds also make them expert witnesses if cases go to court. ARC claims the procedure entails very little financial risk, since it will only conduct a full investigation if preliminary assessment suggests the client has a case worth pursuing.

A full investigation includes site surveys, plans and calculations which take account of weather conditions, road surface grip levels, skid marks, road layout, visibility, vehicle speed, and forces acting on a vehicle.