top of page
Search

Q: when is an accident not an accident?

A: when it's a collision. The police have been at pains to remove the word 'accident' from their lexicon. Simple reason - it implies that no one is to blame. For decades, the initialism RTA (Road Traffic Accident) has been replaced by RTC (Road Traffic Collision). This real life example of the vital importance of precision in written communications was formalized with the launch of the Road Collision Reporting Guidelines in 2021. These guidelines encourage police and media to avoid using "accident" until the facts of a collision were known, instead opting for "crash" or "collision" to leave the question of responsibility open. Obviously, this message did not get through to the person who penned the blurb for Collision. Come on, the clue is in the name!
A: when it's a collision. The police have been at pains to remove the word 'accident' from their lexicon. Simple reason - it implies that no one is to blame. For decades, the initialism RTA (Road Traffic Accident) has been replaced by RTC (Road Traffic Collision). This real life example of the vital importance of precision in written communications was formalized with the launch of the Road Collision Reporting Guidelines in 2021. These guidelines encourage police and media to avoid using "accident" until the facts of a collision were known, instead opting for "crash" or "collision" to leave the question of responsibility open. Obviously, this message did not get through to the person who penned the blurb for Collision. Come on, the clue is in the name!

 
 
 

Σχόλια

bottom of page