CHAPTER V

ACCIDENT AND INCIDENT INVESTIGATION

Obligation to investigate
Article 19
1
Member States shall ensure that an investigation is carried out by the investigating body referred to in Article 21 after serious accidents on the railway system, the objective of which is possible improvement of railway safety and the prevention of accidents.
2
In addition to serious accidents, the investigating body referred to in Article 21 may investigate those accidents and incidents which under slightly different conditions might have led to serious accidents, including technical failures of the structural subsystems or of interoperability constituents of the trans-European high-speed or conventional rail systems.
The investigating body shall, at its discretion, decide whether or not an investigation of such an accident or incident shall be undertaken. In its decision it shall take into account:
a
the seriousness of the accident or incident;
b
whether it forms part of a series of accidents or incidents relevant to the system as a whole;
c
its impact on railway safety on a Community level, and
d
requests from infrastructure managers, railway undertakings, the safety authority or the Member States.
3
The extent of investigations and the procedure to be followed in carrying out such investigations shall be determined by the investigating body, taking into account the principles and the objectives of Articles 20 and 22 and depending on the lessons it expects to draw from the accident or incident for the improvement of safety.
4
The investigation shall in no case be concerned with apportioning blame or liability.

Status of investigation
Article 20
1
Member States shall define, in the framework of their respective legal system, the legal status of the investigation that will enable the investigators-in-charge to carry out their task in the most efficient way and within the shortest time.
2
In accordance with the legislation in force in the Member States and, where appropriate, in cooperation with the authorities responsible for the judicial inquiry, the investigators shall, as soon as possible, be given:
a
access to the site of the accident or incident as well as to the rolling stock involved, the related infrastructure and traffic control and signalling installations;
b
the right to an immediate listing of evidence and controlled removal of wreckage, infrastructure installations or components for examination or analysis purposes;
c
access to and use of the contents of on-board recorders and equipment for recording of verbal messages and registration of the operation of the signalling and traffic control system;
d
access to the results of examination of the bodies of victims;
e
access to the results of examinations of the train staff and other railway staff involved in the accident or incident;
f
the opportunity to question the railway staff involved and other witnesses;
g
access to any relevant information or records held by the infrastructure manager, the railway undertakings involved and the safety authority.
3
The investigation shall be accomplished independently of any judicial inquiry.

Investigating body
Article 21
1
Each Member State shall ensure that investigations of accidents and incidents referred to in Article 19 are conducted by a permanent body, which shall comprise at least one investigator able to perform the function of investigator-in-charge in the event of an accident or incident. This body shall be independent in its organisation, legal structure and decision-making from any infrastructure manager, railway undertaking, charging body, allocation body and notified body, and from any party whose interests could conflict with the tasks entrusted to the investigating body. It shall furthermore be functionally independent from the safety authority and from any regulator of railways.
2
The investigating body shall perform its tasks independently of the organisations referred to in paragraph 1 and shall be able to obtain sufficient resources to do so. Its investigators shall be afforded status giving them the necessary guarantees of independence.
3
Member States shall make provision that railway undertakings, infrastructure managers and, where appropriate, the safety authority, are obliged immediately to report accidents and incidents referred to in Article 19 to the investigating body. The investigating body shall be able to respond to such reports and make the necessary arrangements to start the investigation no later than one week after receipt of the report concerning the accident or incident.
4
The investigating body may combine its tasks under this Directive with the work of investigating occurrences other than railway accidents and incidents as long as such investigations do not endanger its independence.
5
If necessary the investigating body may request the assistance of investigating bodies from other Member States or from the Agency to supply expertise or to carry out technical inspections, analyses or evaluations.
6
Member States may entrust the investigating body with the task of carrying out investigations of railway accidents and incidents other than those referred to in Article 19.
7
The investigating bodies shall conduct an active exchange of views and experience for the purpose of developing common investigation methods, drawing up common principles for follow-up of safety recommendations and adaptation to the development of technical and scientific progress.
The Agency shall support the investigating bodies in this task.

Investigation procedure
Article 22
1
An accident or incident referred to in Article 19 shall be investigated by the investigation body of the Member State in which it occurred. If it is not possible to establish in which Member State it occurred or if it occurred on or close to a border installation between two Member States the relevant bodies shall agree which one of them will carry out the investigation or shall agree to carry it out in cooperation. The other body shall in the first case be allowed to participate in the investigation and fully share its results.
Investigation bodies from another Member State shall be invited to participate in an investigation whenever a railway undertaking established and licensed in that Member State is involved in the accident or incident.
This paragraph shall not preclude Member States from agreeing that the relevant bodies should carry out investigations in cooperation in other circumstances.
2
For each accident or incident the body responsible for the investigation shall arrange for the appropriate means, comprising the necessary operational and technical expertise to carry out the investigation. The expertise may be obtained from inside or outside the body, depending on the character of the accident or incident to be investigated.
3
The investigation shall be carried out with as much openness as possible, so that all parties can be heard and can share the results. The relevant infrastructure manager and railway undertakings, the safety authority, victims and their relatives, owners of damaged property, manufacturers, the emergency services involved and representatives of staff and users shall be regularly informed of the investigation and its progress and, as far as practicable, shall be given an opportunity to submit their opinions and views to the investigation and be allowed to comment on the information in draft reports.
4
The investigating body shall conclude its examinations at the accident site in the shortest possible time in order to enable the infrastructure manager to restore the infrastructure and open it to rail transport services as soon as possible.

Reports
Article 23
1
An investigation of an accident or incident referred to in Article 19 shall be the subject of reports in a form appropriate to the type and seriousness of the accident or incident and the relevance of the investigation findings. The reports shall state the objectives of the investigations as referred to in Article 19(1) and contain, where appropriate, safety recommendations.
2
The investigating body shall make public the final report in the shortest possible time and normally not later than 12 months after the date of the occurrence. The report shall, as close as possible, follow the reporting structure laid down in Annex V. The report, including the safety recommendations, shall be communicated to the relevant parties referred to in Article 22(3) and to bodies and parties concerned in other Member States.
3
Each year the investigating body shall publish by 30 September at the latest an annual report accounting for the investigations carried out in the preceding year, the safety recommendations that were issued and actions taken in accordance with recommendations issued previously.

Information to be sent to the Agency
Article 24
1
Within one week after the decision to open an investigation the investigating body shall inform the Agency thereof. The information shall indicate the date, time and place of the occurrence, as well as its type and its consequences as regards fatalities, injuries and material damage.
2
The investigating body shall send the Agency a copy of the final report referred to in Article 23(2) and of the annual report referred to in Article 23(3).

Safety recommendations
Article 25
1
A safety recommendation issued by an investigating body shall in no case create a presumption of blame or liability for an accident or incident.
2
Recommendations shall be addressed to the safety authority and, where needed by reason of the character of the recommendation, to other bodies or authorities in the Member State or to other Member States. Member States and their safety authorities shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the safety recommendations issued by the investigating bodies are duly taken into consideration, and, where appropriate, acted upon.
3
The safety authority and other authorities or bodies or, when appropriate, other Member States to which recommendations have been addressed, shall report back at least annually to the investigating body on measures that are taken or planned as a consequence of the recommendation.