Involved in a crash in Edmonton? You'll no longer report it to EPS

Starting Thursday, if you’re involved in a collision in Edmonton, you’ll no longer report it to the Edmonton Police Service. Instead, drivers will go to one of two private collision reporting centres run by Accident Support Services International (ASSI).

Officials say the change will be more efficient, and there will be no extra cost to taxpayers.

“This has been a long time coming actually, 17 years,” said Edmonton Police Service Chief Dale McFee at a press conference on Thursday.

“It will improve road safety by removing collisions from the roadside faster, it will provide motorists with an enhanced service, and certainly better customer service, and ASSI’s record management system will help us better identify the trends and route causes driving safety issues on our streets.”

Upon arrival at one of the centres, drivers will fill out their report at a kiosk.

Accident Support Services International collision reporting centre in Edmonton.

The report will include photos of the damage to prevent fraud, and will be sent to the insurance company.

The bill for the centres will be paid by insurance companies.

“We put a file together, we send it to them, and they pay us per file. And that’s how we subsidize this whole program,” said Steve Sanderson, ASSI president. “So it’s no cost to the public, it’s no cost to the police, there’s no cost to the municipality.”

The program is already running in smaller Alberta municipalities like Grande Prairie, Lethbridge, and Medicine Hat.

“We’ve been partnered with them for a long time and it has worked so well,” said Mercida Holstein, AMA Insurance claims manager. “What it means for us is - as they said - great customer service because we’re getting our police reports much more quickly than we would.”

Accident Support Services International collision reporting centre in Edmonton.

Police say there are about 34,000 crashes on Edmonton roads annually.

There will be about 10 officers at each ASSI centre to look over reports, but officials say privatizing the reporting will free up other officers to deal with more important issues.

“The public has consistently voiced their want to see their police service use its resources more efficiently,” McFee said.

The centres are located at 15750 116 Avenue and 5805 87A Street. 

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Jeremy Thompson.