The state says taxpayers save because of Georgia’s contract with a private company to maintain and sell accident reports.
But there is a cost. Drivers have to pay more — $11 — for a copy of their accident reports from the website Buycrash.com than they would if they went to their local police department, which would provide them for anywhere from $5, for 10 cents a page or for free.
The win for taxpayers is Appriss Inc. will have paid the state $650,000 by the time the five-year contract expires in October for the rights to distribute accident reports. And local law enforcement agencies are rewarded with $2 to $5 for sale of each of their accident reports sold on the Appriss website Buycrash.com, reports that local police would otherwise sell directly for $5 or for 10 cents a page or simply give away at no cost.
All the while, the company is making millions selling accident reports for $11 each to drivers, their lawyers and insurance companies and anyone else whose property was damaged by a car crash..
In addition to the additional expense to drivers, the website also can be valuable to identity thieves, according to a warning issued by the FBI. Georgia law limits who can get an accident report to those involved, insurance companies or their lawyers and the media but to verify who is buying the documents it takes only a click in a box on the company’s website.
Read the full story about how you're being excessively charged for accident reports by a private company, only on www.MyAJC.com.
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