At the scene of a crash, the information to exchange after a car accident is the other driver’s full name, address, phone number, driver’s license number and issuing state, insurance company and policy number, and the vehicle’s make, model, year, color, and license plate. You are legally required to give the same details in return. Everything else you do at the scene, from photos to witness names, is about backing up that exchange with evidence.
What to Get from the Other Driver
Treat the exchange as a checklist, not a conversation. Nerves scramble memory, and anything you forget to collect becomes harder to recover once vehicles have been towed and people have driven off.
- Full name, address, and phone number. An email address helps for follow-up.
- Driver’s license number and the state that issued it.
- Insurance company name and policy number. Ask to see the physical or digital insurance card and photograph it, which eliminates transcription errors later.
- Vehicle make, model, year, color, and license plate number with the issuing state.
- The Vehicle Identification Number if you can safely read it. The VIN is a 17-character code on the driver’s side of the dashboard at the windshield and on a sticker inside the driver’s door jamb. It lets insurers confirm the exact vehicle and check for pre-existing damage.1eCFR. 49 CFR Part 565 – Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) Requirements
If the driver is not the registered owner of the car, get the owner’s name and contact information too. The insurance policy is often in the owner’s name, and the owner is the party on any property damage claim.
Photograph the other driver’s license as well as the insurance card. People sometimes give inaccurate information at the scene, whether from nerves or on purpose, and a photo locks the details in before anyone leaves.
What You Must Give the Other Driver
State traffic codes uniformly require you to share your name, address, vehicle registration number, and insurance carrier with the other driver. Refusing, or leaving before you do it, is a criminal offense in every state. For property-damage-only accidents it is typically a misdemeanor, and penalties can include fines, jail time, and license suspension even when no one was hurt. Share the same information you are collecting.
You are not required to go further than that. More on what to keep to yourself below.
If You Hit a Parked Car or Unattended Property
Hitting a parked car, mailbox, fence, or other unattended property still triggers an exchange obligation. Make a reasonable effort to find the owner. If you can’t, leave a written note somewhere visible on or inside the damaged property with your name, address, phone number, and a brief description of what happened, then contact the nearest police department to report it. Driving off without leaving information turns a minor insurance matter into a hit-and-run charge.
Documenting the Scene
Insurance adjusters and attorneys reconstruct accidents from evidence, not memory. The more you capture while you are still there, the stronger your position when the claim is evaluated.
Photos
Use your phone from multiple angles. A few wide shots showing where the vehicles came to rest relative to each other and the road are more useful than a dozen close-ups of one dent. Then move in for detail:
- Damage to every vehicle, including the undercarriage if you can safely reach it.
- Skid marks, debris, broken glass, and fluid spills.
- Traffic signs, signals, lane markings, and speed limit signs near the collision point.
- Road conditions: potholes, wet pavement, construction zones, anything that may have contributed.
- Any visible injuries on you or your passengers.
Record the exact location by street name, highway mile marker, or GPS pin, along with date and time. Weather and lighting are worth noting too. “Overcast, 4:45 p.m., wet road” paints a picture that matters when fault is assessed weeks later.
Dashcam and Nearby Cameras
If your car has a dashcam, save the file immediately. Many dashcams record on a loop and overwrite footage within hours. Do not edit, crop, or post it publicly. Your insurer and attorney should see the unaltered original first.
Look around for security cameras on nearby businesses, homes, or traffic signal poles. Note the addresses, and if a business is open, ask a manager whether they can preserve the footage. Surveillance systems overwrite quickly, and a polite request the day of the crash is often the difference between having video evidence and not.
Witnesses and Police
An independent witness who saw the collision from the sidewalk or another car carries more weight with an insurer than either driver’s account. If anyone stopped or was nearby, get their name and phone number, and jot down what they say they saw. Memories fade, and witness statements matter most when the two drivers tell different stories.
When officers respond, write down each one’s name, badge number, and agency. Before you leave, ask for the police report number and where to get a copy. Reports usually become available within a few days to a few weeks, often for a small fee, and include the officer’s observations, a scene diagram, and sometimes a preliminary fault assessment.
In many states you are required to call police when an accident involves injuries, and most traffic safety experts recommend calling even for property-damage-only crashes. A report on file smooths the claim and protects you if the other driver later changes their account.
Commercial Trucks and Rideshare Drivers
Collisions with commercial trucks and rideshare vehicles involve information you won’t need in an ordinary car-on-car crash.
Commercial Trucks
Federal law requires commercial motor vehicles to display the carrier’s legal name and USDOT number on both sides of the truck in letters visible from 50 feet away.2eCFR. 49 CFR 390.21 – Marking of Self-Propelled CMVs and Intermodal Equipment Photograph the cab door markings. Record any MC (Motor Carrier) number as well, and get the trucking company’s name and phone number. The USDOT number lets anyone search the carrier’s inspection, crash, and safety history on the FMCSA’s SAFER System.3Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Company Safety Records Still collect the driver’s personal license and insurance details, since the driver’s coverage and the carrier’s coverage are often separate.
Rideshare Drivers
If the other driver was working for Uber or Lyft, the insurance that applies depends on the driver’s status in the app at the moment of the crash:
- App off: only the driver’s personal auto insurance applies.
- App on, waiting for a ride request: the rideshare company provides limited third-party liability coverage. For Uber, that is $50,000 per person and $100,000 per accident for injuries, plus $25,000 for property damage.
- En route to a pickup or carrying a passenger: coverage rises to at least $1,000,000 for injuries and property damage.4Uber. Insurance for Rideshare and Delivery Drivers
Try to find out whether the app was running and whether a passenger was in the car. If you were the passenger, screenshot your ride details, which record the time, route, and driver’s name. Collect the driver’s personal insurance information as well, since the rideshare company’s coverage is secondary in some situations and absent in others.
What Not to Say at the Scene
You can meet every legal obligation at the scene while still protecting yourself from statements that weaken your claim later.
Don’t say “I’m sorry” or “that was my fault.” Insurance adjusters and opposing attorneys treat those words as admissions, and you may not have the full picture: the other driver may have been texting, or a signal may have malfunctioned. Let the investigation sort out fault based on evidence.
Don’t volunteer your policy limits, deductible, or any other coverage detail. You are required to share the name of your insurer, nothing more. That information is between you and your insurance company.
Don’t say “I’m fine” or “I’m not hurt.” Adrenaline and shock mask pain, and whiplash, concussions, and soft-tissue injuries often don’t produce symptoms until hours or days later. Say you plan to be checked by a doctor, then actually do it within 24 to 72 hours. A medical visit that soon creates a documented link between the crash and any injuries, which matters enormously for an injury claim.
After You Leave the Scene
Call your insurance company the same day if possible, or within 24 to 48 hours. Most auto policies require prompt reporting, and while they don’t always set an exact deadline, waiting gives your insurer grounds to argue it couldn’t investigate properly, which can lead to a denied claim. Have the other driver’s information, the police report number, and your photos ready. Stick to the facts of where, when, what, and who. You don’t need to speculate about fault.
Most states also require drivers to file a written accident report with the DMV or state police when a crash causes injuries, a death, or property damage above a set dollar amount. Thresholds typically range from about $500 to $2,500, and deadlines fall between 5 and 30 days after the accident. A police report filed by the responding officer doesn’t necessarily satisfy your separate obligation as a driver. Check your state’s DMV website for the right form and the deadline. Failing to file when required can bring license suspension or misdemeanor charges in some states.