Hit-and-run

University of Memphis students' vehicles may be more at risk for an accident while parked on campus than during the commute to it.

Bruce Harber, director of police services, said anyone involved with any type of vehicular accident should notify Police Services immediately.

"Hit-and-runs are basically the same thing as leaving the scene of an accident," he said. "You have a responsibility if you're involved in a motor vehicle accident. You should leave a letter or call the police. You need to do the right things."

Harber said the phrase "hit-and-run" was used in 43 of 238, or 18 percent, of on-campus, auto-related accidents in 2010. Streets located between Poplar and Park and between Highland and Goodlett are considered campus streets, according to Derek Myers, deputy director of Police Services.

Lesley Cruz, graduate student studying health administration, said she was the victim of a hit-and-run Feb. 24 at R.P. Tracks, located near campus on Walker Avenue.

"I was parked parallel to R.P. Tracks. I was there with my friends for probably about two hours — about 8:30 to 10:30 at night," she said. "And when I left, I noticed my mirror was hanging on by its wires, basically. I didn't really notice the paint or the dents at first."

Cruz said she was disappointed and couldn't believe no one made an attempt to notify her of the accident.

Cruz did not file a police report or talk to her insurance company about the accident. She said she was not expecting to get money or try to punish anybody for the accident because she understands what college life is like.

"It just seems like a reoccurring theme within our age group that if something happens, they're either quick to point the finger somewhere else or they don't want to take ownership of their mistakes, and I think that's a problem," she said.

Students who witness a hit-and-run should notify Police Services and file a report so police might be able to find the person responsible, Harber said.

"If we get (license) tag numbers, notes, witnesses, then we will identify the individual who's responsible if we can," he said.

Filing a report covers the student from an insurance standpoint as well because he or she will have a report on file to make a claim and get the car repaired, Harber said.

"If it's not serious damage, most people are probably going to want to just make a claim or file," he said. "We look at it from a statutory standpoint, making sure a report gets filed for insurance purposes for the victim, the person whose car is damaged, and also get it in to the judicial affairs system."

Parker Rhett, State Farm insurance agent, said the first thing victims of hit-and-runs should do is see if any witnesses can help draw up a report.

The next thing to do, Rhett said, would be to file a non-emergency police report to let officials know what happened and see if there is any way to generate evidence as to who may have caused it.

Rhett said after filing a police report, victims should speak with their insurance agents.

"(You need) to see whether or not you want to file a claim because most people who have car insurance on their policy — they have uninsured motorist coverage, which basically accounts for anyone who hits them or causes any damage to their car," he said.

Victims' insurance costs will not increase if they make a claim because they are not at fault, Rhett said.

"If it's minimum damage and it's just a couple hundred bucks or something like that, then they might want to pay it out of their pocket and not report it to insurance," he said.

Rhett said if a motorist hits a car and the driver of the damaged car isn't present, the driver at fault should leave his or her contact information on the vehicle.

"Hit-and-run incidents happen pretty often — I don't think there is an exact number to it, but it's certainly not a rare occasion," he said. "It happens quite often, which is very unfortunate. The main places we hear of it happening are parking lots."

Culprits of vehicular accidents have an obligation of reporting the incident to the police, Harber said.  

"If they don't, depending on damage and other factors, especially on a city street, they're going to be charged with leaving the scene of an accident," he said.