Police defend new incident response policy

televisionDespite public criticism, the Barbados Police Service is standing by its decision to shift resources away from minor traffic incidents. The new policy will take effect on September 15, when police will no longer handle minor traffic incidents, with insurance agents taking over that responsibility.

Officer Rodney Innis on Thursday Diving into the detailsand argued that the move was a strategic decision aimed at optimizing police efficiency.

“We did not implement this policy as a knee-jerk reaction,” Innis explained. “We did it because we believed it was the right thing to do to ensure our resources were better spent on dealing with the most serious issues.”

The policy shift will allow police to prioritize crashes that result in death and serious injury, freeing up more time for more pressing enforcement tasks. Innis stressed that this approach is consistent with other countries where police focus on serious accidents rather than minor collisions.

“Some developed countries that had vehicles earlier than us, have more vehicles than us, have more financial resources, human resources, and technology than us, and this is the path they have to take because they are also at this point,” said Innis. He posed a question: “Do we continue to investigate 7,500 accidents a year, wait until we get to 10,000 accidents a year, or make a decision to use this time to encourage and train people to pay attention to road safety?”

A Police spokesperson urged the public to give the new policy adequate time to take effect, while assuring Barbadians that the Police will still respond to incidents involving serious injuries, fatalities and hit-and-runs.

Anton Lovell of the Barbados General Insurance Association supported the move and insisted insurers were well prepared to handle minor incidents.

“I’m sure this policy can work. It gives police more time to fight crime,” said Lovell, who acknowledged there would be challenges but expressed confidence in the insurance industry’s ability to shoulder its responsibilities.