Should you pay a fee for emergency response services following an accident? A resounding three out of four adults said “no” when recently surveyed by telephone in a Harris Interactive poll. The majority surveyed believe their taxes cover the time and services provided by emergency response providers following a traffic accident. In recent years, local governments looking to plug budget shortfalls, have sought to impose special fees on traffic accident victims.

“There is strong public opposition across the country to this new trend of charging accident response fees,” said Robert Passmore, senior director, personal lines for the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America. “Public safety is the primary duty of local government and police or firefighting services are already paid for through property and other local taxes. Motorists clearly see this for what it is: local governments trying to impose a hidden, double tax on consumers. We call these fees an accident tax or crash tax.”

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Source: Property Casualty Insurers Association of America – News Release, Jan 31, 2011