Rhode Island General Laws 31-33-1. Accident reports
The operator of every motor vehicle which is in any manner involved in an accident within this state, in which any person is killed or injured, or in which damage to the property of any one person, including the operator, in excess of five hundred dollars ($500) is sustained, shall, within twenty-one (21) days after the accident, report the matter in writing to the division of motor vehicles. The report, the form of which shall be prescribed by the division of motor vehicles, shall contain information to enable the division of motor vehicles to determine whether the requirements for the deposit of security under chapters 31 and 32 of this title are inapplicable by reason of the existence of insurance or other exceptions specified in the chapters, and the administrator of the division of motor vehicles may regard the information given as true, until the contrary reasonably appears. If that operator is physically incapable of making the report, the owner of the motor vehicle involved in the accident shall, within twenty-one (21) days after learning of the accident, make the report. The operator or the owner shall furnish any additional relevant information that the division of motor vehicles shall require.
Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 31-33-1
- in writing: include printing, engraving, lithographing, and photo-lithographing, and all other representations of words in letters of the usual form. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-16
- Motor vehicle: means any vehicle driven or drawn by mechanical power for use on the public streets, roads, and highways;
(2) "Odometer" means an instrument for measuring and recording the actual distance a motor vehicle travels while in operation;
(3) "Person" means any individual, sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, or business trust including, but not limited to, private individuals and motor vehicle dealers, both wholesale and retail, whether the private individual or dealer is a dealer in the ordinary course of business or not;
(4) "Repair and replacement" means to restore to a sound working condition by replacing the instrument or any part thereof or by correcting what is inoperative;
(5) "Transfer" means to acquire ownership by purchase, gift, bequest, or any other means. See Rhode Island General Laws 31-23.2-2
- person: may be construed to extend to and include co-partnerships and bodies corporate and politic. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-6