As long as there are only dented cars, an accident is a matter for the insurer. The moment a person is hurt, criminal proceedings begin under Article 286 of the Criminal Code. Their outcome depends not only on what happened on the road but also on what the driver says and signs in the first few days.

Where an administrative case ends and a criminal one begins

Criminal liability under Article 286 CC arises where a breach of the traffic rules has caused the victim at least bodily injury of medium severity. Minor injuries do not lead to a criminal case under this article.

The degree of injury is determined not by a police officer or the doctor in the emergency department but by a forensic medical examination. So in the first days after the accident the driver often does not know which kind of case they are part of. It is best to act as if the case is criminal.

Article 286 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine

Part 1 is a non-grave offence, Part 2 a grave one (Article 12 CC). This determines whether reconciliation with the victim is possible — more on that below.

How the case unfolds: from the scene to the court

1. The case is entered in the Unified Register of Pre-trial Investigations. The police open criminal proceedings as soon as there is a victim in hospital. They do not need to wait for an examination to do so.
2. Inspection of the scene, accident diagram, seizure of recordings. The investigator records the position of the cars, skid marks and debris, and collects camera footage. Vehicles are often seized and placed under arrest as physical evidence.
3. Medical test of the driver for intoxication. It decides which article applies — 286 or 286-1.
4. Questioning. The driver may first be questioned as a witness. But everything they say will later become material against them once their status changes.
5. Expert examinations. Forensic medical — on the severity of injuries. Vehicle accident (auto-technical) — whether the driver had the technical ability to avoid the collision and which traffic rules were breached. Often also a trace examination and an examination of the vehicle's technical condition.
6. Notice of suspicion. Usually after the expert conclusions, once the investigator considers that the breach of the traffic rules is causally linked to the consequences.
7. Indictment and trial.

What a driver should do in the first days

1. Give no explanations on the substance without a lawyer. Not at the scene, not “for the record” in hospital, not for “just a chat” in the investigator's office. You have the right not to testify against yourself (Article 63 of the Constitution). Declining to explain is not an admission of guilt.
2. Take the medical test for intoxication. Refusing the test is a separate offence with serious consequences. If you disagree with the breathalyser, demand an examination at a healthcare facility and have this written into the record.
3. Preserve your own evidence. Dashcam — copy the recording to several places before handing over the memory card. Witness contacts. Nearby cameras: recordings are erased within 3–14 days, so the lawyer's request must go out immediately.
4. Do not sign a diagram or records you disagree with. Write your objections by hand, in the document itself.
5. Do not drop out of the investigation's sight. Failing to appear when summoned is an argument for a stricter preventive measure.
6. Look after the victim. Not as an “admission” but as a human being: find out how they are, help with medicines. This matters for the court and for a possible reconciliation. Do it through your lawyer or after consulting them, so that no word becomes a “confession”.

Can you settle with the victim?

You can, and the law encourages it, but in different ways depending on the consequences.

Injury of medium severity (Article 286(1)). This is a non-grave offence committed through negligence. If the driver committed it for the first time, reconciled with the victim and compensated the harm, the court releases them from criminal liability (Article 46 CC). There is no criminal record. On 1 June 2026 the Joint Chamber of the Criminal Cassation Court of the Supreme Court confirmed that this rule applies to Article 286(1), and that courts may not add conditions that are not in the law (case No. 629/612/25). Another route is a reconciliation agreement in court (Articles 468–469 CPC).

Article 46 CC; Articles 468, 469 CPC; ruling of the Joint Chamber of the Criminal Cassation Court of 01.06.2026 in case No. 629/612/25

Serious injury or death (Article 286(2)). This is a grave offence. Release from liability through reconciliation is not possible here, and the CPC does not provide for a reconciliation agreement in such cases. But compensation for the harm, the position of the victim or the family, and the driver's conduct after the accident are among the main circumstances the court takes into account in sentencing. If the court imposes imprisonment of up to 5 years, it may release the driver from serving the sentence on probation (Article 75 CC).

Who pays the victim

Harm to the victim's life and health is first compensated by the insurer under the driver's compulsory motor third-party liability (MTPL) policy — within the sum insured. Anything above the limit, as well as non-pecuniary damage, the victim may recover from the driver or the owner of the car. The owner of a source of increased danger is liable regardless of fault (Article 1187 of the Civil Code), so the dispute in this part is mostly about the amount.

The victim files a civil claim within the criminal proceedings (Article 128 CPC), and the court decides it together with the verdict. The defence must check every item of the claim: receipts, medical documents, the calculation of lost earnings, the grounds for non-pecuniary damage. Courts often reject part of the claim.

Article 1187 of the Civil Code; Article 128 CPC

What not to do

• Do not leave the scene. If you took the victim to hospital, come back (clause 2.10 of the Road Traffic Rules; details in the guide What to do after a road accident).
• Do not refuse the medical test for intoxication.
• Do not give explanations or sign documents without a lawyer “because I'm not at fault anyway”.
• Do not hand over the original dashcam recording without keeping a copy.
• Do not promise the victim or the family money in conversation without documents, and do not write messages that could be read as an admission of guilt.
• Do not put off getting a lawyer until the notice of suspicion. Examinations are ordered in the first days, and the questions for the expert are formed at the same time.

In short

• A criminal case under Article 286 CC arises if the victim has at least an injury of medium severity. The degree is determined by a forensic medical examination.
• Intoxication means Article 286-1 CC: harsher penalties, no reconciliation and no probation.
• Guilt is decided by the vehicle accident examination: whether the driver had the technical ability to avoid the accident.
• Under Article 286(1), reconciliation and compensation release the driver from liability (Article 46 CC, Joint Chamber of the Criminal Cassation Court, 01.06.2026).
• Explanations on the substance — only after consulting a lawyer.

Also useful:

• Practice: road accidents;
• Detention;
• Preventive measures;
• Questioning as a witness.