Services
Document a loss
Support a claim
For carriers and employers
Service areas
Middle Tennessee
- Nashville
- Clarksville
- Murfreesboro
- Franklin
- Hendersonville
- Smyrna
- Spring Hill
- Gallatin
- Lebanon
- Columbia
- Brentwood
- Mount Juliet
- La Vergne
- Cookeville
East Tennessee
West Tennessee
Pedestrian Accident Scene Documentation in Tennessee
Neutral documentation of collisions between vehicles and people on foot. Delator Claims Division records the crossing location, lighting, sight lines and vehicle contact evidence for insurers, attorneys, injured pedestrians and families throughout Tennessee, without determining fault.
- Coverage
- 95 of 95 counties
- Dispatch
- 24 / 7 / 365
- Metro response
- Under 60 min avg.
- Statewide
- 4-hour guarantee
What this service covers
In a pedestrian collision one party leaves almost no physical trace on the road. There is no second vehicle to examine and often no tire marks, because the driver may not have braked before contact. What remains is subtle: a dent or cleaned area on a hood, a cracked windshield, a shoe scuff on the pavement, personal items scattered along the vehicle's path. Each helps the parties work out where on the road the person was and how the vehicle was moving.
The setting carries equal weight. Whether there was a marked crosswalk, a signal with a walk phase, a sidewalk, a bus stop or a streetlight are facts about the place that can be recorded accurately after the event. Delator documents the vehicle where it can be accessed and the location under conditions as close as practical to those at the time, and reports what is there without drawing conclusions from it.
Where this documentation is requested
- A person was struck while crossing mid-block at night and the parties dispute how far away the driver could have seen them.
- A collision occurred in a marked crosswalk and the signal timing, pedestrian heads and push buttons need to be recorded.
- A pedestrian was walking along a road with no sidewalk and the shoulder width and edge conditions are in question.
- A driver's carrier needs the hood, windshield and bumper contact evidence photographed before the vehicle is repaired or washed.
- A family or attorney wants the location documented while roadside items, paint marks from responders and debris are still present.
Crossing, lighting and contact evidence
- Crosswalk and signal equipment
- Crosswalk markings and their wear, pedestrian signal heads, push buttons, countdown displays and observed walk and clearance intervals timed on site.
- Street lighting at the location
- Each luminaire near the crossing, whether it is lit, its spacing and side of the road, with night photographs taken at fixed, recorded camera settings.
- Vehicle contact evidence
- Bumper, grille, hood, windshield and roof-edge dents, cracks, wipe marks and fabric impressions, measured for height above ground and offset from center.
- Pavement and item locations
- Shoe scuffs, fluid, dropped belongings, eyeglasses or phone fragments and responder paint marks, located by measurement from curbs or other fixed points.
- Walking route and facilities
- Sidewalks, worn footpaths, curb ramps, bus stops and the doors or driveways nearby, showing the paths available to a person on foot.
- Driver's approach view
- Photographs and video from driver eye height at measured intervals approaching the area, recording parked vehicles, vegetation, poles and grade.
From request to delivered record
- RequestCall dispatch or submit the request form with the location, loss type and urgency.
- DeployDispatch assigns the nearest available licensed field investigator through the statewide network.
- DocumentPhotographs, video, measurements and factual notes are captured once the scene is safe to work.
- PreserveFiles are timestamped, organized and kept in their original form with a record of who captured them.
- ReportThe package is delivered securely to the requesting party, typically the same day.
Visibility is the usual point of dispute
Most disagreement in these claims concerns what each party could see and when. The driver says the person appeared from between parked cars or was wearing dark clothing on an unlit stretch. The pedestrian or family says the driver had a long clear view. Because Tennessee applies modified comparative fault, the share assigned to each side affects the outcome, and adjusters and attorneys look closely at lighting, clothing, obstructions and the distance available to react.
Delator can return to the location at the same hour and, where practical, in similar weather to photograph the approach in the lighting that exists there. Camera settings are recorded so that others can assess how the images relate to what an eye would perceive; a photograph is not offered as proof of what a driver saw. Burned-out lamps, overgrown vegetation and parked vehicles are noted as found on the date of the visit, which may differ from the date of the collision.
Evidence that fades from the vehicle and the street
Contact marks on a vehicle are fragile. A cleaned patch in road film on a hood, a fabric weave pressed into dust, a hair or fiber in a windshield crack: a car wash or a rainstorm removes them. Dents are pulled and glass is replaced within days. On the street, small items are picked up or swept, and paint marks sprayed by responders wear away under traffic. Early documentation preserves the heights and positions that later analysis depends on.
Delator's personnel have accident reconstruction experience, and the documentation can be gathered with the reference points and measurements a reconstruction professional needs for scaled diagrams. The pedestrian collision reconstruction support page describes that technical work. On a neutral assignment the report contains findings of fact only. It does not assign fault, assess injuries or offer any view on the value of a claim.
On this assignment Delator field personnel record what is physically present: photographs, video, measurements and factual notes. They do not adjust, appraise or value the loss, do not determine coverage, cause or fault, and do not represent any party to the claim.
Delator Claims Division is not a law firm, an insurer or an engineering firm, and nothing on this page is legal advice.
Common questions about this service
Can you document the scene at night, at the same time the collision happened?
Yes. Dispatch operates around the clock, and a visit can be scheduled for the same hour and day of the week as the collision. The notes record the weather, the moon and sky condition as observed, which streetlights were working and the camera settings used for every night photograph.
Do you photograph the injured person's clothing and shoes?
If the person, the family or their attorney makes the items available, clothing, shoes and carried belongings can be photographed with scale to record color, reflective material and damage. Delator does not take custody of the items, does not examine injuries and does not review medical records on neutral assignments.
The driver's car is at a body shop. Can it still be examined?
Yes, if the owner or insurer authorizes access and repairs have not been completed. The investigator photographs and measures the contact areas. If the vehicle has been repaired, replaced parts are sometimes still at the shop and can be photographed, and repair records can be noted if the requester provides them.
Will the report say who had the right of way?
No. Right of way and fault are legal determinations made by adjusters, attorneys or a court. The report records the crosswalk, signals, signs, lighting and physical evidence so those decisions rest on accurate information. Delator is not a law firm and does not advise on the claim.
Available statewide, including
Every Tennessee county is covered. See the deployment map for typical response tiers by county.
Request documentation anywhere in Tennessee
Dispatch is staffed around the clock. For time-sensitive scenes, calling is fastest; the request form works for routine and scheduled assignments.