Vehicle Incident Investigation Handbook

Oct 2008

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

Intr

oduction

Your safety is our No.1 priority

But, you also have a key role to play

WCBF is committed to investigating incidents to learn from them & make things safer for all

The more we know about an incident, the more in-depth its investigation can be

This booklet provides a few reminders to help you to preserve important physical evidence & gather useful information on the incident

Don’t forget ! - a WCBF incident reporting form must be completed for all incidents

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

The W

CB

F W

ay

If your vehicle is involved, your role is to:

stay calm & stay safe

follow the relevant flow chart on next page

seek help & administer help to others

identify & get details of witnesses

comply with any attending Police & other

Emergency Services - do not obstruct them

make notes describing how the incident

happened & the incident scene

take lots of photos (using mobile phone ?)

capture / preserve or record any physical

evidence that has a short shelf life

take key measurements (pace them out ?)

complete appropriate WCBF incident report

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

The W

CB

F W

ay

Assess incident severity(nb. if in doubt, assume a serious incident)

Minor incident

Notify Supervisor

immediately on return

Complete incident

report form/s a.s.a.p

SERIOUS INCIDENT

Supervisor arranges for a WCBF

vehicle incident investigator to attend

Notify supervisor immediately

Describe what happened & advise

who has been contacted

G Drake 0438 651 506

R Sanderson 0400 982 250

C Kidd 0419 373 763

D Pearson 0409 520 353

Call 000 (Emergency Services)

& contacts others, as required, eg.

T Kroon (OH&S) 556 155 34

0437 468 990

M King (EPA) 556 155 74

0437 101 102

Workcover 0183 125 34

Complete incident

report form/s a.s.a.p

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

The W

CB

F W

ay

As a WCBF vehicle incident investigator:

prepare - find out all you can re. the incident

collect relevant maps / plan your route

can you get use of a sat nav with GPS ?

pick up any PPE & equipment required

let someone know where you are going !

don’t become a 2nd incident – drive carefully

stay calm & safe at the scene

watch the weather ! (prioritise & act quickly)

comply with attending Police & other

Emergency Services - do not obstruct them

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

Pre

para

tion

Do you need help? (look out, measuring ?)

Have you picked up ?

maps (inc Google Earth images ?) / sat nav (GPS unit)

vehicle / driver details ?

mobile phone & key phone numbers

suitable clothing & footwear, inc, PPE

vehicle beacon

clipboard / pad / notebook & pens

WCBF report forms

camera/s (inc. spare batteries & empty memory card/s)

measuring wheel, tape measure/s

level, compass, tyre gauge

markers / crayons / spray paint

torch & spare batteries

dictaphone ?

watch / stop watch ?

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

At T

he S

cen

e &

Site

Safe

ty

Park safely & do not obstruct anyone

Assess risks

Identify yourself to Police / Emergency

Services, if present, & state purpose

Familiarise yourself with the site, its layout,

alignment & conditions

Walk through scene

Safe to do a drive through/s ?

OK to talk to WCBF driver ?

Work safely & sensibly – live traffic kills !

Make notes & sketch plan/s

Take measurements

Take lots of photographs & video

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

The W

CB

F W

ay

As a WCBF investigator you should:

identify the location (GPS?, key ref. features)

make notes describing the incident & the

scene (include a key for any symbols used)

work systematically

take (key) measurements (nb. select a datum)

take numerous photographs (and video ?)

capture / preserve and record any physical

evidence with a short shelf life

analyse your findings

work backwards from rest positions of

vehicles (inc. finding point/s of impact)

complete the WCBF incident form & ensure

it is entered on the WCBF crash database

At The Scene

Incident Investigators

Should Focus On:

HVE

(Humans, Vehicles, Environment)

SPM

(Safety, Photographs, Measurements)

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

Hum

ans

Who was involved in the incident ?

Can you get their contact details ?

What were those involved doing, why & how?

their role (eg. driver, passenger, pedestrian)

purpose of journey, origin & destination

chronology of incident

their recollections

distractions ?

Witnesses present ?

who ?

where were they ?

what did they see ?

Make a personal assessment of those involved

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

Vehic

les

What vehicles were involved ?

age, make, model, colour, condition, modified?

Which direction did each vehicle come from ?

Where was each vehicle going to ?

Vehicle rest positions & orientations (have

vehicles been moved ?)

Position of impact & maximum engagement

Likely position/s of initial loss/es of control

Speed estimates ?

Damage to vehicles & check for paint transfer

Obvious mechanical defects ?

Seat belt usage / air bag deployed ?

Use of lights / indicators etc

Tyres (describe condition & photograph them)

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

Road E

nvironm

ent Orientation (where’s north? the sun/moon?)

Weather & road conditions at time of incident,

and at time of the investigation

Road surface condition (any defects or surface

contamination ?)

Presence, type & condition of line markings,

lighting, signage, drainage, safety fences etc

Road geometry & alignment issues ?

Limitations to sight lines of those involved ?

Speed limit ?

Vegetation issues ?

Tyre & gouge marks? (measure & photograph)

Debris (measure & photograph)

Evidence of previous incidents at same site ?

Consistency of provision (‘like’ bends etc)

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

Takin

g P

hoto

gra

phsTake too many photographs than not enough

“If in doubt, take it”

Use ‘reliable’ objects to denote scale

Take from ‘close up’ outwards & use referencing

Replicate driver/witness eye height if required

50m intervals normally OK (but might be complex

scene or specific evidence items to capture?)

Make accompanying notes while taking photos

Adopt sound basic photo technique – watch

shadows, glare etc, unless this is a factor

Photographing vehicles – see next page

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

Ph

oto

gra

ph

ing

Ve

hic

les

Acknowledgement: BP Vehicle Accident Checklist

The Key Question !

Would someone else be able to investigate & reconstruct the incident using your

notes, measurements & photos?

Vehicle Incident

Investigation

Handbook

Back In T

he O

ffic

e

Check/clean equipment & store it for next use

Replace consumables (replace used batteries,

empty memory cards after download)

Collate information / data

Analyse photos / video, select key photos

Re-draw sketch plans ?

Reconstruct (refer to ARRB workshop notes &

examples for useful equations etc)

Complete WCBF incident report

Ensure incident goes onto WCBF database

Ensure notes / photos etc are retained (filed)

Internal report needed ?

Any lessons to be learnt ?

Any changes to policies & practices required ?

This handbook has been developed for

by

www.arrb.com.au

Disclaimer: this handbook provides basic, general advice and guidance to WCBF employees who are required to collect information and evidence from the

scene of incidents involving WCBF vehicles. Such work is likely to involve working in, or immediately adjacent to, live traffic. Extreme care must be

taken in such circumstances for personal safety and the safety of others. WCBF personnel should conduct a risk assessment on site before

commencing their investigation and follow all pertinent WCBF issued OH&S guidance.

WCBF and ARRB Group (2008)