What to Do When the Police Report Blames You for a Car Accident in New Mexico

The Police Report Said It Was His Fault. A $160 Video Proved Otherwise.

If you've been in a car accident in New Mexico, you may have heard this before:

"The police report says you were at fault. There's nothing we can do."

A lot of people stop there. They assume the police report is the final word. They figure the insurance company must be right. So they walk away without a dime.

But here's what I've learned after years of handling injury cases in New Mexico: the police report is the starting point. It is not the finish line.

What Happened in This Case

My client was riding a motorbike when he was seriously hurt in a crash. He was taken away by ambulance. His injuries were bad.

By the time anyone looked at the facts, the police had already filed their report. And that report said my client caused the accident.

The insurance company used that report to deny his claim completely.

Here's something most people don't know. When you are taken away from an accident scene in an ambulance, the police often do not get to hear your side of the story. They piece together what they can from the scene and from whoever is still standing there.

And when a motorbike is involved, officers often assume the rider is at fault before they even start asking questions.

So my client had a police report working against him. He had an insurance denial. And honestly, even I had some early doubts. Not because I thought he was lying, but because serious injuries can affect memory. I wanted to find out what actually happened before I drew any conclusions.

I Googled the Accident Scene

Instead of accepting the police report as fact, I did something simple.

I looked up businesses near the accident location.

The police did not have any cameras at that intersection. But I found an auto body shop nearby. I called them and asked if they had security cameras pointed toward the street.

They did.

They told me the footage would cost $160.

I wrote the check the same day.

Photo by Pawel Czerwinski on Unsplash‍ ‍

The Video Changed Everything

That footage showed exactly what happened.

My client was telling the truth. The video proved it.

Suddenly, we had something the insurance company could not argue with. They could not hide behind the police report anymore. The evidence was right there on screen.

I remember thinking that $160 was about the cheapest price I had ever paid for the truth.

And I want to be clear about something. If that video had shown my client was at fault, I would have told him that right away. I was not looking to build a false case. I was looking for the facts. As it turned out, the facts were on his side.

The Case Was Still Hard

Winning on liability was not the end of the story.

My client had serious injuries. And his insurance coverage had real limits. Even after we proved the other side was at fault, there was only so much money available to recover.

But we did not stop there.

We negotiated medical liens to reduce what he owed to providers. We cut costs wherever we could. We looked at every option to put as much money as possible into his hands.

In the end, he walked away with far more than he would have gotten on his own. And far more than he would have received if we had accepted that first denial without pushing back.

What This Means for You

If you were hurt in a car accident in New Mexico and the police report does not tell your story, do not give up.

Here is the truth: police reports can be wrong. Officers work with limited information. They write down what they see at the scene. They do not always know what caused the accident.

Security cameras are everywhere now. Gas stations. Parking lots. Businesses. Neighbors' homes. There is a good chance that someone nearby captured what really happened.

An attorney who knows what to look for can find that footage before it gets deleted, often within days of the accident.

You do not need a perfect police report to have a strong case. You need someone in your corner who is willing to do the work to find out what actually happened.

That is what I do.

If you were hurt in a car accident in New Mexico and you are not sure where to stand, call me. The first conversation is free. And it might be worth a lot more than $160.