What to Do After a Car Accident in the UAE: Reporting, Police Apps, Saaed, Rafid and the Insurance Claim

The first minute after a collision decides most of what follows: whether anyone is hurt, whether the road is blocked, and whether there will be a report your insurer accepts. The UAE handles minor accidents differently in each emirate — Dubai through a police app, Abu Dhabi through Saaed, Sharjah through Rafid — but the sequence is the same everywhere. Here it is, from the official pages.

Last checked against the official pages on 14 September 2026. Procedures change; the linked page always wins over this article.

First: people, then traffic

1. Anyone injured? Call 999 from anywhere in the UAE, say where you are, and follow the instructions. Do not move an injured person unless there is an immediate danger such as fire.
2. Nobody hurt and the cars can move? The federal portal’s guidance for a minor accident is to move the vehicles to the shoulder so they do not block traffic. Leaving two driveable cars in a live lane is itself a violation and, on a fast road, a danger.
3. Hazard lights on, and stay out of the traffic lanes while you deal with the rest.

Photograph before anything else changes

Before the cars are moved — if it is safe to take thirty seconds — photograph the positions, the damage on both vehicles, both number plates and the road markings. After they are moved, photograph the damage close up. These pictures are what settle a disagreement later.

Dubai: the police app for minor accidents

Dubai Police provide a minor traffic accident report service in their app for accidents without injuries, whether you are at fault or the affected party. It is a smartphone-only service: you enter the details, the other party’s details and the photos, and receive an official report electronically. Two points from the service page worth knowing in advance:

• The report is valid for three months from the date of issue — that is the window to lodge the repair claim with the insurer.
• If the drivers disagree on what happened, the app is not the route; you contact the relevant police station (or 999 for a patrol) and a police officer determines the report.

The patrol’s report — or the app’s — is coloured by fault: the party at fault receives the pink copy and the other party the green, and the insurers read them accordingly.

Abu Dhabi: Saaed

Abu Dhabi Police delegate minor accidents to Saaed. Its own description of the process: a Saaed patrol reaches you within about 15 minutes of your report of a simple accident, a traffic expert reconstructs the accident and defines legal liability with an electronic system, and the report is sent automatically to the insurance companies concerned. Saaed also offers the report online through its e-services; accidents involving injury go to the police.

Sharjah: Rafid

Rafid is Sharjah’s official minor-accident reporting service. Reports can be made through the Rafid smart app, and the fee depends on how many vehicles were involved and how the accident is reported — Rafid’s FAQ listed AED 385 for a two-vehicle accident reported through the app when we checked. Rafid also handles roadside assistance and, through its centres, technical inspection.

The other emirates

Ajman, Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain report through their police and the Ministry of Interior channels; 999 remains the number for anything involving injury or a dispute. Whichever emirate you are in, the accident is reported where it happened, not where the car is registered.

Then: the insurer

1. Notify the insurer as soon as practical — policies set a notification period, and the accident report’s own validity is three months.
2. Give them the report, the photos, your licence and the registration card.
3. Do not begin repairs before the insurer’s approval unless the policy allows it; the unified third-party policy specifically lets the injured party repair within the agreed value, but the insurer may ask for proof the repair was done.
4. For the other party’s car, the unified policy sets the rules: agency repair in the first year of registration, suitable workshops after that, market value or replacement above 50% damage — see our insurance guide.

The mistakes that cost the claim

• Driving away without a report. No report, no claim, and leaving the scene of an accident with damage is an offence.
• Agreeing to settle in cash and then finding the damage was larger than it looked.
• Letting the report expire — three months passes quickly when parts are on order.
• An undeclared modification on the car in the photographs.
• An expired licence or registration at the time of the accident. The report records both.

After the repair

If a lamp, bumper, grille or running board was replaced, keep the invoice with the report. Aftermarket parts are fine for a car outside its agency-repair year — the unified policy itself allows parts “of the same grade” — but they should be road-legal, correctly fitted and, for lighting, of a certified type, or the next inspection becomes the next problem.

Sources

• UAE Government portal (u.ae) — Road accidents: call 999, move a driveable car to the shoulder after a minor accident.
• Dubai Police — Minor Traffic Accident Report: the smartphone service, three-month validity, what to do when drivers disagree.
• Saaed for Traffic Systems (Abu Dhabi) — How Saaed works and Accident report.
• Rafid Automotive Solutions (Sharjah) — Rafid and its FAQs.
• Central Bank of the UAE rulebook — Unified Motor Vehicle Insurance Policy Against Third Party Liability: repair and replacement rules.

PartMate sells parts and accessories, not accident or insurance services. This article summarises public information for convenience; it is not legal advice.