Motorists could be able to report road accidents online under Government plans to ease the burden on drivers and police.
Transport minister Jesse Norman said the current system, requiring motorists to report an accident in person at a police station within 24 hours, is out of date and in need of modernisation.
Launching a 12-week consultation, he will tell the National Roads Policing Conference on Tuesday that online reporting will be quicker and easier.
“The current system is out of date. It takes up considerable amounts of time and increases queues for reporting crimes,” he will say.
“The ability to report accidents online will make the whole process quicker and easier for both drivers and the police.”
According to the Department for Transport (DfT), more than 130,000 personal-injury accidents are reported to police each year with most recorded by an officer at the scene.
Around 20% are reported at police stations while a further 55,000 damage-only crashes were also reported over the counter in 2015.
If supported by the consultation, it will be open to police forces in England, Scotland and Wales to adopt online reporting, although people will still be able to register at a police station.
AA president Edmund King said: “Most drivers will welcome the option of registering their crash on the ‘super highway’ rather than having to drive and wait at a police station.”
At the same time, Mr Norman will announce details of an updated system for officers to record accidents, which is being developed by the DfT.
The new Collision Reporting and Sharing System (Crash) will see officers use an app on a handheld device to fill in details of accidents at the scene with accurate locations.
