Police stop using the word accident in relation to collisions

The National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) has praised efforts by police forces to phase out the word ‘accident’ in relation to road collisions.

Jo Shiner applauded the work done so far to address the importance of language and communication around road collisions, but said there are still improvements that can be made.

Research shows more than two thirds of police news stories refer to a vehicle in collision reports, before mentioning/rather than a person, with 23% referring to a vehicle as active (‘the vehicle attempted to go the wrong way’).

The NPCC has launched a new handbook ahead of Operation Limit on December 1, which is the national policing campaign to prevent deaths and injuries caused by drink and drug driving.

Shiner said: “I am incredibly supportive of these Road Collision Reporting Guidelines because we know how important using the right language at the right time is, not just for accurate reporting, but also of course, for victims, families, friends and communities.

“A key pillar in the NPCC Roads Policing Strategy is about ‘Changing Minds’. 

“Language matters if we are to change minds and inform the public of the truly devastating consequences death and injury has on our roads every day. 

“It is also important to ensure anyone with information that can help a police investigation can come forward with confidence and therefore how we describe a collision, and all of the elements involved in it, is vital to securing that public support.”

Research, conducted by the author of the UK’s Road Collision Reporting Guidelines, and funded by the Foundation for Integrated Transport, analysed 227 press releases from 45 police forces across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as using Freedom of Information requests, and found use of ‘accident’ is now the exception, rather than the rule – appearing just eight times, generally as apparent ‘slips of the tongue’ in quotes from officers.

However, among areas for improvement are language describing vehicles, rather than drivers, as participants in collisions, with more extreme examples describing vehicles ‘attempting to drive the wrong way’, ‘intentionally swerving’ or even ‘acting suspiciously’.

Typical examples include ‘a collision involving a pedestrian and a Mercedes’.

Research shows this focuses audience attention, and blame, towards those injured in a collision, by as much as 30%.

Simply adding the terms ‘being driven’, or ‘driver’ to a sentence can create a more balanced public understanding of collisions.

In total 49 of 227 police press releases analysed, 22% included wider collision statistics relating to a sentencing outcome or operation.

This added context helps audiences understand collisions are not isolated incidents, but part of predictable and preventable trends that contribute to road danger, such as speeding, distracted driving and drink and drug driving.

The research grouped police press releases into four main categories: collision news, sentencing news, operations and initiatives, and tributes.

Collision news reports tended to feature the most ‘active vehicle’ language, and lacked context on wider collision trends.

While understandable in the immediate aftermath of a collision, forces can improve accuracy and clarity within time, resource and legal constraints, and the new handbook features some examples of more balanced wording to use in communications.

It also suggests ways to quickly add general context about wider collision trends using publicly-available data.

Only five UK police forces adopted the guidelines so far

The Road Collision Reporting Guidelines were published in 2021 following a public consultation.

The Guidelines have the support of the NPCC and individual forces across the UK.

However, Freedom of Information requests, conducted as part of this research, revealed just five police forces have formally adopted the Guidelines (Greater Manchester, Gwent, Northamptonshire, South Yorkshire and Warwickshire), and just one is using them in practice.

The report also seeks to celebrate and share good practice in public communications.

South Yorkshire added context by highlighting the link between a lack of insurance and other criminal behaviour, while Surrey underlined the significant role speeding and dangerous driving play in the “Fatal 5” – the five most common contributory factors to fatal collisions.

Avon and Somerset pointed out that a third of collisions, including 12 deaths on its roads within a year, involved drink or drugs.

This context can change by 100% audiences’ understanding of how road crashes happen and what the solutions are.

Warwickshire Police adopted the Guidelines in 2020 and have tried to integrate them in-house and with external partners. The partnership is also looking to replace assets like the SLOW ACCIDENT signs used at the roadside.