To look up a car accident report, contact the law enforcement agency that responded to the crash and request a copy online, in person, or by mail. Most agencies charge a small fee and ask for a few details about the collision. Reports are usually ready within a few business days for minor crashes and take longer when serious injuries or fatalities are involved.
Find the Agency That Investigated
The agency holding your report is the one that showed up to the scene. City police departments handle collisions inside municipal boundaries. County sheriff’s offices cover unincorporated areas. State highway patrol or state troopers investigate crashes on interstates, state highways, and rural roads outside local police jurisdiction.
If you’re not sure which agency responded, look at the business card or case number the officer handed you at the scene. If that’s gone, call the non-emergency dispatch line for the county where the crash happened and ask who took the call.
Some states also forward copies of every crash report to a central repository, often the state’s department of motor vehicles or department of transportation. In those states, you can request the report from the central agency even when a local department investigated. That’s a useful backup when you can’t identify the responding agency or the local records office keeps limited hours.
Information to Have Ready
The single most useful piece of information is the report or case number the officer gave you at the scene. With that number, the records clerk can usually pull the file in seconds.
If you don’t have the number, gather as much of the following as possible:
- Date of the crash. Even an approximate date within a day or two helps.
- Location: street name, nearest cross street, or highway mile marker.
- Names of the drivers involved, spelled correctly.
- Vehicle details: license plate numbers, or the make, model, and color. A Vehicle Identification Number is more reliable than a plate because VINs don’t change.
Most agencies can locate a report with just a date and one driver’s name. More detail means less time at the counter.
Request the Report Online
Many agencies now distribute crash reports through third-party platforms. The most widely used is LexisNexis BuyCrash, which contracts with police departments across the country to provide authorized online access.1LexisNexis Risk Solutions. BuyCrash You pick your state and jurisdiction, enter your crash details, pay by credit card, and download a PDF. Some state agencies run their own portals as well. Washington State Patrol, for example, operates its own electronic collision records system.2Washington State Patrol. Collision Records
To find out whether your agency offers online access, search the agency’s website for “crash report” or “accident report,” or check buycrash.lexisnexisrisk.com to see if your jurisdiction participates. Reports through these platforms are often available within 24 to 48 hours after the officer completes the paperwork.1LexisNexis Risk Solutions. BuyCrash
Request in Person
If online access isn’t available or you’d rather handle it face to face, go to the records division of the police department, sheriff’s office, or state patrol office that investigated the crash. Bring a valid photo ID, your report or case number if you have one, and enough details to help the clerk find the file. You’ll fill out a short request form, pay the fee, and in most cases walk out with a copy the same visit.
Call ahead. Some records divisions keep limited public hours, and not all accept cash.
Request by Mail
Mail works when online access isn’t offered and visiting in person isn’t practical. Send a written request with your full name, the date and location of the crash, the report number if you have it, and a photocopy of your photo ID. Include a check or money order for the fee, made out to the agency. Many agencies post a downloadable request form on their website; use it when available so you don’t leave out something required. Mail requests usually take two to four weeks, and a self-addressed stamped envelope can speed things up slightly.
Fees and How Long It Takes
Each agency sets its own fee. Most charge somewhere between $5 and $20 for a standard report, though longer reports from multi-vehicle or serious-injury crashes can cost more where agencies price by page. Online platforms may add a convenience fee on top of the base charge. Payment methods depend on the channel: credit card online, and check, money order, or sometimes cash in person or by mail.
Processing time depends on the crash and the agency’s workload. A straightforward fender bender might be available in a few business days. Crashes involving serious injuries, fatalities, or suspected crimes take significantly longer because the investigation is more thorough. If you’ve been waiting longer than you expected, call the records or traffic division directly rather than the main dispatch number.
Who’s Allowed to Get a Copy
Access rules vary by state, but most jurisdictions release an unredacted copy to drivers and vehicle owners involved in the collision, passengers, their attorneys, and their insurance companies. Insurance carriers have broad access because the federal Driver’s Privacy Protection Act lists claims investigation and underwriting as permissible uses of personal information from motor vehicle records.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 2721 – Prohibition on Release and Use of Certain Personal Information From State Motor Vehicle Records
If you weren’t involved in the crash, your access depends on state public records law. Many states will release a redacted version that removes personal details like home addresses and phone numbers. Attorneys investigating a potential lawsuit, and licensed private investigators working on their behalf, can generally access unredacted records under the DPPA’s litigation exception.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 2721 – Prohibition on Release and Use of Certain Personal Information From State Motor Vehicle Records If you’re not sure whether you qualify, call the records division before making the trip.
What’s in the Report
A police crash report is the responding officer’s written record of the collision. It documents the date, time, and location, descriptions of the vehicles, the identities and contact information of drivers and passengers, and whether anyone was injured. The officer notes road and weather conditions, draws a diagram of how the vehicles collided, and writes a narrative describing what appears to have happened based on physical evidence and witness statements.
The narrative is where most of the value sits for insurance and legal purposes. Officers often note contributing factors like speeding, distracted driving, or failure to yield, and may indicate which driver they believe was at fault. Citations issued at the scene are usually documented too.
If No Officer Came to the Scene
For minor collisions with no injuries and limited property damage, police sometimes don’t send an officer. When that happens, no police report gets created automatically, and the responsibility shifts to you. Most states require drivers to file a self-report with the state’s department of motor vehicles or department of transportation when the crash exceeds a damage threshold, typically between $500 and $1,500, or when anyone is injured. Filing deadlines range from immediate notification up to ten days depending on the state.
Even if your state’s threshold isn’t met, filing a report is still a smart move. You can usually walk into the nearest police station and ask to file a desk report, which creates an official record without an officer having visited the scene. Some states also let you submit a self-report online through the DMV. Without any official documentation, your insurance claim rests entirely on photos, witness accounts, and the information you exchanged with the other driver.
Fixing Mistakes in the Report
Officers are human, and reports sometimes contain errors. Objective factual mistakes, such as a wrong vehicle color, an incorrect license plate, or a misspelled name, are the easiest to fix. Contact the officer who wrote the report, bring proof of the correct information like your registration or license, and the officer can amend the report.
Disputed interpretations are harder. If the officer’s narrative says you ran a red light and you believe the light was green, the officer is unlikely to change a conclusion based on professional judgment. In that case, you can ask the officer to attach a supplemental statement reflecting your account. Not every agency will agree, but it’s worth asking. Your insurance company and attorney can still challenge the report’s conclusions using other evidence like dashcam footage, traffic camera recordings, or independent witness statements. A police report carries weight, but it isn’t the final word on fault in a legal proceeding.