MOULTRIE, Ga. – Drivers should be watchful for deer on the road as deer season approaches and law enforcement reports an increase in deer-related vehicle accidents within Colquitt County.

“At this time of the season, it may be seasonal depending on when hunting season starts, but we have noticed here in the past couple of weeks an uptick in vehicle versus deer crashes,” Georgia State Patrol Sgt. First Class John VanLandingham, Post 12 commander, said in a phone interview Tuesday.

Two separate vehicle versus deer wrecks occurred in Colquitt County last weekend.

Nathaniel Beck, a 26-year-old driver of a 2016 Ram pickup truck, was traveling west on Funston-Doerun Road when a deer ran out into the roadway on Aug. 26 at 1:10 p.m., according to the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office accident report.

The truck received damage to the front and left fender.

Two days later, another accident occurred in a similar fashion. 

Nancy Norman, 68, was driving a 2014 Kia Soul north on County Line Road when a deer struck the driver-side front fender.

The CCSO accident report said the deer continued to make contact with the car, which caused damage to the driver side.

Neither party in the accident reported being hurt.

VanLandingham explained what drivers should be watchful for while driving. 

He said drivers should be extra cautious while driving at dawn and dusk. That’s when deer generally tend to get out and start moving. 

VanLandingham also shared what drivers should do in the event of a crash.

“Depending on the severity of the crash, if they’re broken down or injured, they need to dial 911 immediately. From there, they’ll send a deputy or trooper out there to conduct an investigation,” he said. “If it’s a car versus deer plus another vehicle [wreck] that would involve having an officer go out and [conduct] that investigation.”

VanLandingham asked for drivers to refrain from veering off the road. 

“If you know you’re in an area where they have a lot of deer [then] slow down. We have a lot of wrecks where people get snatched off the road,” he added.

He said sometimes driver’s reactions to seeing deer can affect the outcome. 

“We just tell people to apply your brakes the best you can,” he said. “If you think you can veer to the left or right then that’s fine but do not snatch your vehicle because you can lose control.” 

Drivers must also be mindful of their speed.

VanLandingham concluded, “Sometimes it’s better just take your chances. If a deer’s in front of you [then apply your] brakes. If that doesn’t work, if you hit it, you hit it. We all hate to hurt animals like that, but you have no choice sometimes and your car can get fixed.”

Drivers should contact their insurance agency and report the deer crash if necessary. 

Sharon DeMott, an insurance agent with State Farm, agreed drivers should not attempt to dodge the animal. 

They should obtain an accident report and report the claim to their insurance agent.

“As far as insurance goes, if they’re in a position where they can get a report, that would be great. They need to report the claim. Tell us when it happened, where it happened, and then we will proceed trying to get their car repaired,” Demott said.

Drivers must obtain a police report if the deer collision includes more than one vehicle.

She said, “We’ve got to have a police report, so we know exactly what happened. But the original cause would go back to the deer.”

Her most important advice to drivers is to slow down and be mindful.

“It’s [about] to be deer season, so everybody slow down and [know that] when you see one, there’s probably going to be another one behind it,” she said. 

“Just because you think you missed that one [deer] going across the road … be mindful [because] there’ll probably be another one behind them,” she said. “They usually travel in twos and threes.”