How do I file a police report after a car accident?

Call the police when it happens. If anyone is hurt or killed, the driver must give notice "immediately by the quickest means of communication" to the local police department if the crash is inside a municipality, otherwise to the county sheriff or state highway patrol [1]. (That is Alabama's wording; Tennessee, Oklahoma and South Carolina have the same structure. See do you have to report a car accident.) Call 911 first if anyone needs help.

Some departments take minor-crash reports online. Tulsa's system lets you "submit a traffic collision report and print a copy for your records," is "not a substitute for calling 911," and may not review the report for up to 48 hours [9]. The same page says the system is not for emergencies or injury collisions, collisions on Interstate highways such as I-244 and I-44, or collisions outside the Tulsa city limits [9]. Columbia, SC sends an officer to a private-property collision only if it involves personal injury, death, hit-and-run, impaired driving or a disturbance between the people involved [10]. Check your own city's police website.

At the scene, the driver must give a name, address and registration number: Alabama's § 32-10-2 says the driver "shall give his name, address and the registration number of the vehicle he is driving, shall upon request exhibit his driver’s license" to the other driver, person struck or person attending a vehicle, and render reasonable assistance to anyone hurt [2]. South Carolina's § 56-5-1230 is similar [3]. Get the officer's name, agency and the case number.

Find out which agency investigated, then use that state's route: Tennessee Highway Patrol crashes are sold by the state online ($10.00) or at a district office or by mail ($4.00); [4] Alabama crashes through the ALEA portal; [5] Oklahoma collision reports through Service Oklahoma on a Collision Request for Records form; [6] South Carolina collision reports through the SCDMV online, by mail or at a branch [8]. City police and sheriffs also give out their own copies.

Alabama: "It can take up to 15 business days from the date of a crash for the crash report to be available online." [5] Tennessee: THP reports are "available approximately 7 days after the date of the crash at the THP District Office." [4] Oklahoma: $7.00, $10.00 certified, and "Collision reports may take up to 30 days to populate in the system." [7] South Carolina: $10.00 per report by mail or at a branch (Form FR-50), call the SCDMV at 803-896-5000 for the online price, and no wait is listed; a copy is not available "until it has been received and processed by the SCDMV." [8]

Often because of who is asking, or because the report is not ready. Alabama limits who may get an accident report to a list of people (see the Alabama page). Oklahoma's form says "By law, you are only allowed to obtain your own Collision Report." [7] South Carolina requires a separate written request stating the intended use from anyone not named in the report [3]. See also are police reports public record.

In everyday use, yes: police report, accident report, crash report and collision report mostly mean the officer's report of a crash, though each state's official form has its own name. See how to read a police accident report. The written report that drivers or owners file themselves is a different document: Tennessee calls it an Owner Operator Report and says it is required "in addition to any report filed by an investigating officer." [11]

Call the police right away, using the same notice rule: the local police department inside a municipality, otherwise the county sheriff or highway patrol (call 911 if anyone is hurt or in danger) [1]. Leaving the scene is itself a crime; see hit and run: what to do.