How do I obtain red light camera footage of an accident? (insurance, lawyers)

[nwchi]

I was involved in an accident in which another driver ran a red light and sideswiped me. There was a red light camera on the east/west street I was traveling on. There was no red light cam on the north/south street she was traveling on. I brought this to the attention of my insurance and they basically said nothing short of subpoena will get me that footage. The other driver is claiming she had a green and that I was the one that ran the red light. So basically it's my word versus hers. If I could get my hands of the footage it would put me in the clear. How do I go about getting red light cam footage of my accident?

[Drover]

Your insurance company is correct, getting the footage requires a subpoena. Let your insurance company deal with it. They have lawyers who know what to do.

[nwchi]

Originally Posted by Drover

Your insurance company is correct, getting the footage requires a subpoena. Let your insurance company deal with it. They have lawyers who know what to do.

I am hoping they do. But from my initial talk with them it sounded like something they were unwilling to do.

[Chi-town Native]

Originally Posted by nwchi

I was involved in an accident in which another driver ran a red light and sideswiped me. There was a red light camera on the east/west street I was traveling on. There was no red light cam on the north/south street she was traveling on. I brought this to the attention of my insurance and they basically said nothing short of subpoena will get me that footage. The other driver is claiming she had a green and that I was the one that ran the red light. So basically it's my word versus hers. If I could get my hands of the footage it would put me in the clear. How do I go about getting red light cam footage of my accident?

The City should be able to get that for you, as if you get a ticket from one of those cameras they reference a recording of the video you can access on the web.

Not sure who you'd need to speak to, but I'd try 311 and/or your alderman's office to start.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by nwchi

I am hoping they do. But from my initial talk with them it sounded like something they were unwilling to do.

Take note that the representative you talk to on the phone doesn't work in the legal department so they may or may not know what legal will do. And they will subpoena that video if they have reason to believe your story and don't want to pay out to you and/or the other party your behalf.

[Chi-town Native]

actually, I should have prefaced this with:

1. was anyone injured?

2. any tickets issued?

3. is the damage to your car more than a few thousand bucks?

If the answers to all are no, your insurance company has likely deduced it will cost them more to investigate than to either pay for your repair (minus deductible) or to press the other company.

I got hit while I was parked many years ago, and a neighbor left a note with their phone number, and gave me a plate # of the offending vehicle.

I reported this to the insurance company (and police), and they said without an injury they just worked it out with the other company.

So I traced the plate myself via a friend, and gave that to the insurance company. They claimed they called the owner, who said "well, I wasn't driving that day" and basically just paid for the repair minus the deductible. Total repair was only $1K , so I'm guessing there's some unwritten rule in the industry that they don't even bother with the routine accidents.

[Attrill]

Originally Posted by Chi-town Native

If the answers to all are no, your insurance company has likely deduced it will cost them more to investigate than to either pay for your repair (minus deductible) or to press the other company.

That's exactly what they'll do - especially if there were no major injuries and the other driver has insurance. I've had two cars totaled in accidents and the insurance companies worked everything out perfectly without me having to do anything other than pick up a check.

Based on your description there will be no red light camera footage. If the driver who hit you didn't have a camera to trip, and you didn't trip a camera by running a light - there won't be anything to review.

[nwchi]

Originally Posted by Chi-town Native

actually, I should have prefaced this with:

1. was anyone injured?

2. any tickets issued?

3. is the damage to your car more than a few thousand bucks?

1. yes

2. no

3. im not an adjustor but from the looks of it i think my car was totaled. and at the speed she hit us at combined with my speed we ended up in a flower shop.

Originally Posted by Attrill

Based on your description there will be no red light camera footage. If the driver who hit you didn't have a camera to trip, and you didn't trip a camera by running a light - there won't be anything to review.

Somehow I'm hoping this will help prove my story but I doubt the lack of a red light ticket will have the impact as the footage of me legally entering the intersection.

[Seven Costanza]

Originally Posted by nwchi

Somehow I'm hoping this will help prove my story but I doubt the lack of a red light ticket will have the impact as the footage of me legally entering the intersection.

Yes there should still be continuous video, the only thing that gets "tripped up" are the camera's that take photo's of your license plate.

[Drover]

The video data is stored for a certain period of time whether there's a "trigger" event or not and that data is subject to subpoena. With injuries and a lot of property damage, I should certainly think one side or the other is going to want that footage.