Police said nothing can be done
An officer told you to just accept it, and you believed that was the final word.
Hearing an officer say nothing can be done feels like an official verdict on your entire situation. In Malaysia, the police handle the criminal and traffic side of an accident, which is a separate track from your civil claim for compensation. One being closed does not close the other.
Why this line feels so final
A uniformed officer telling you to accept the situation carries real weight, and it is natural to take it as the whole answer. Comments like this are common in cases involving minor damage, unclear evidence, or an unidentified vehicle, where police resources or evidence may not support further criminal action.
That is a statement about the criminal or traffic side, not about your right to seek compensation through a different route.
Why the police cannot decide your civil claim either way
A civil claim for your injury is pursued against the at-fault driver’s insurer, and the insurer’s duty to satisfy a valid judgment exists independently of what the police decide to pursue.[1] Who is at fault after an accident is assessed through evidence gathered for the civil claim, which can include the same police report even where no prosecution follows.
If the situation involved a driver who fled and was never identified, that raises its own, separate limits, covered honestly in a hit-and-run situation explained.
What to do after hearing this
A few steps keep your options open regardless of what the police decide.
- Get a copy of your own police report, even if no further action is being taken.
- Keep every medical record and piece of evidence you already have.
- Ask specifically whether the vehicle or driver was identified, since that changes what routes apply.
- Treat the police response as one part of the picture, not the whole answer.
The honest limits
If the driver or vehicle genuinely cannot be identified, that is a real limit on what compensation route applies, not something this page can talk around. Where identification exists but the police simply are not pursuing prosecution, your civil route generally remains open.
What to do next
Being told nothing can be done by the police is not the same as being told nothing can be done at all. See a full road accident claim for how the civil route works, or start with do you need a lawyer.
Common questions
If police say nothing can be done, is my claim over?
No. The police handle the criminal and traffic side of an accident, which is separate from a civil compensation claim pursued through insurers and, if needed, the courts. One does not decide the other.
Why would police tell me nothing can be done?
This is often about whether they will pursue a prosecution or further investigation, based on their own evidence or resources, not a statement about your right to civil compensation.
What if the other driver was never identified?
That is a genuinely harder situation and worth understanding honestly on its own. If the vehicle is later identified, further routes can open up even after an initial dead end.
What should I do if I am told this?
Keep your own police report, medical records and any evidence you have, and pursue the civil side separately through the relevant insurer or a lawyer. The police response on one side does not close the other.
Sources
- Road Transport Act 1987, s.96 (Ministry of Transport) (accessed 2026-09-22)