Accident reconstruction

The events immediately before and during a collision are often reported in an incomplete way by the involved persons or witnesses. Contradictions between witness statements may occur, or there is even no usable information at all about the event. We reconstruct the physical aspects of accidents using the objective information available. Whenever persons were injured in the accident, a (technical) accident reconstruction forms the basis of any further biomechanical assessment.

Depending on the juridical questions, the following informations may be reconstructed:

  • velocities
  • vehicle loadings due to the collision
  • driving manoeuvres
  • velocity-distance-time relationships
  • avoidance analysis
  • vehicle and driving dynamics
  • accidents involving pedestrians and two-wheel vehicles
  • compilation of accident plans using police photos
  • additional technical questions e.g. regarding belts, crash tests to reproduce the accident, compatibility of the damages to the claimed accident

Data needed

The accident reconstruction is performed on the basis of the official files (e.g. police reports, photos and accident plans). Additionally, we need the damage reports of the vehicles involved (expertises, photos, damage calculations). The amount of available information is a decisive factor determining the possibilities and limitations of the accident reconstruction.

Example: rear-end collision (PDF, in German)

Animation: pedestrian collision (video download)

crash1 crash2 crash3

Contact: Dr. M. H. Muser / G. Florin