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. 2008 Dec;14(6):360-5.
doi: 10.1136/ip.2008.019638.

Under-reporting of road traffic injuries to the police: results from two data sources in urban India

R Dandona  1 , G A Kumar, M A Ameer, G B Reddy, L Dandona
Affiliations

Under-reporting of road traffic injuries to the police: results from two data sources in urban India

R Dandona et al. Inj Prev. 2008 Dec.

Abstract

Objective: To report the magnitude of under-reporting of road traffic injury (RTI) to the police from population-based and hospital-based data in the urban population of Hyderabad, India.

Methods: In a cross-sectional population-based survey, 10 459 participants aged 5-49 years (94.3% participation), selected using three-stage systematic cluster sampling, recalled the reporting of non-fatal RTIs to the police in the preceding 12 months and fatal RTIs in the preceding 3 years. In addition, 781 consecutive RTI cases presenting to the emergency department of five hospitals provided information on RTI reporting to the police.

Results: In the population-based study, of those who had non-fatal RTIs and sought outpatient or inpatient services, 2.3% (95% 1.1% to 3.5%) and 17.2% (95% CI 3.5% to 30.9%), respectively, reported the RTI to the police. Of the non-fatal consecutive RTI cases presenting to emergency departments, 24.6% (95% CI 21.3% to 27.8%) reported the RTI to the police. In the population-based study, 77.8% (95% CI 65.1% to 90.5%) of the fatal RTIs were reported to the police, and of the consecutive fatal RTI cases presenting to emergency departments, 98.1% (95% CI 95.5% to 100%) were reported to the police. The major reasons cited for not reporting RTIs to the police were "not necessary to report" and "hit and run case".

Conclusions: As road safety policies are based on police data in India, these studies highlight serious limitations in estimating the true magnitude of RTIs from these data, indicating the need for better methods for such estimation.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Percent of road traffic crashes (RTC) resulting in non-fatal injuries reported to police for the type of road user in the population-based and hospital-based studies in Hyderabad. Motorised two-wheeled vehicle includes moped, luna, scooter, scooterette and motorcycle; Motorised three-wheeled vehicle are commercial passenger vehicles and include auto-rickshaw and seven-seater.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Percent of road traffic crashes (RTC) resulting in fatal road traffic injuries reported to police in the population-based and hospital-based studies in Hyderabad.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Reasons for not reporting road traffic crash resulting in road traffic injury to the police in the hospital-based study in Hyderabad.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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