Delphi-MRC has been involved in the forensic investigation of road crashes across the country for over 10 years. This challenging area of activity developed from our road safety engineering expertise, and builds extensively on our knowledge base of road design and operations practices. Initially confined to the provision of expert witness support for litigation, the service has expanded to include all aspects of the forensic investigation of road collisions, including: early response forensic data collection; crash reconstruction; and the provision of road design and operations expert witness investigation, analysis, and litigation support.

Early response forensic data collection The importance of accurate and appropriate data collection as the foundation for a successful forensic investigation, reconstruction, and expert causal analysis of a road accident cannot be understated. While police-recorded data can be useful, it is frequently inadequate to provide the basis for an in-depth accident causation analysis directed at road design or operations factors. This is not due to any lack of diligence on the part of the law enforcement authorities: police officers cannot be expected to possess the engineering expertise required to quickly assess and gather data upon critical infrastructure characteristics that may be crucial to developing an accurate understanding of contributing factors to the crash. Our field investigators are trained professional engineers equipped with the knowledge and tools necessary to ensure that all relevant field data are gathered, verified, and organized in a way that provides the basis for a sound and defensible technical analysis of the collision. We provide both retainer-based and single-response services.

Collision reconstruction The reconstruction of collisions is a complex and exacting science. The process of developing a detailed understanding of the sequence of events that took place during a collision can provide critical information with respect to contributing causal factors. Our Design Forensics team combines individuals with skills in accident reconstruction and road design, operations, and safety. We have found this combination of skillsets in both the individuals and the team to be particularly helpful not only in the interpretation and understanding of complex situations (where you would expect), but also in relatively simple circumstances where the interactions of the driver, the vehicle, and the roadway environment may not always be easily understood.

Expert witness litigation support Our Design Forensics team - led by Dr. John Robinson, P.Eng. - has participated in numerous collision investigations in various Provinces across Canada. Our Expert Witness litigation support services are directed at providing in-depth support for legal teams in assessing and dealing with road design, operations, and road safety engineering aspects of civil liability claims relating to motor vehicle collisions. Details of this work are obviously confidential, but references can be made available upon request.