Georgia County Cutting Back on Accident Investigations

Starting Tuesday, the Richmond County Sheriff’s Department will no longer respond to most traffic accidents on private property, including parking lots.

Lt. Lewis Blanchard said the change is to better utilize limited law enforcement personnel. He said most large law enforcement agencies in Georgia already handle accidents on private property this way.

He said the parties should exchange information, document what happened, including taking photos, and report it to their insurance companies using the proper Georgia accident form, which is available online.

He told The Augusta Chronicle that officers still want to be notified of some accidents on private property. That includes any accidents involving injury or death or where one of the parties appears to be under the influence of drugs or alcohols.