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Hurt in a crash in Memphis, with bills you can't cover?

Bills, missed work, an insurer already calling? Here are Tennessee's claim numbers, your crash report and your deadline. Asking for a call is free, and you can say no.

General information, not legal advice. Updated November 10, 2026. Attorney review pending

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On this page
  1. What injury claims cost insurers in Tennessee
  2. Real results from the Memphis area
  3. Unpaid medical bills and uninsured drivers, where you live
  4. How to get your Memphis crash report.
  5. Tennessee's time limit is short.
  6. A calm list for the first three days.
  7. Sources

What claims cost

What injury claims cost insurers in Tennessee

No source we found reports what claims cost insurers inside Memphis itself, so the closest honest numbers are for all of Tennessee. Each figure says what it is and where it comes from.

$736.6 millionin bodily injury liability losses insurers recorded for Tennessee crashes (Table 8B: $736,560,931 across 32,324 claims), accidents in 2022Incurred losses: money paid plus the insurers' own estimates for claims still open, plus adjustment expenses. Private passenger auto, separate-limit bodily injury coverage only, so the true total is higher. This is what these claims cost insurers, not what injured people received.Source: NAIC (Table 8B, Bodily Injury Liability 2020-2022, Total Business, printed p. 42).
$22,787average insurer loss per bodily injury liability claim in Tennessee ($22,786.81 exactly), accidents in 2022Incurred losses divided by incurred claims, so it is what a claim cost insurers on average, not what an injured person received. The countrywide figure in the same table is $28,918.86.Source: NAIC (Table 8D, Bodily Injury Liability 2020-2022, Total Business, printed p. 44).
$28,278Many claims are smallerwhat the average bodily injury liability claim cost insurers, 2024Private passenger auto, excluding Massachusetts and most no-fault states; some claims are far larger and many are smaller. It includes insurers' claim-handling costs, so injured people received less than this on average.Source: Triple-I / ISO.
$10.05 billionestimated total economic cost of motor vehicle crashes in Tennessee (about $1,472 per person), 2019A cost estimate for the whole state, whoever paid. Not money paid to injured people. The national average was $1,035 per person.Source: NHTSA (Table 6-1, p. 100).
About these numbers
  • $736.6 million Incurred losses: money paid plus the insurers' own estimates for claims still open, plus adjustment expenses. Private passenger auto, separate-limit bodily injury coverage only, so the true total is higher. This is what these claims cost insurers, not what injured people received.
  • $22,787 Incurred losses divided by incurred claims, so it is what a claim cost insurers on average, not what an injured person received. The countrywide figure in the same table is $28,918.86.
  • $28,278 Private passenger auto, excluding Massachusetts and most no-fault states; some claims are far larger and many are smaller. It includes insurers' claim-handling costs, so injured people received less than this on average.
  • $10.05 billion A cost estimate for the whole state, whoever paid. Not money paid to injured people. The national average was $1,035 per person.

These are averages and totals across many claims. They describe what insurers and courts have done, not what any one claim is worth. Every case is different, and most claims end in a settlement, which is often far less than a headline verdict. CrashFirst is not a law firm and cannot tell you what your claim is worth.

Real examples

Real results from the Memphis area

Past results do not predict yours.These are real, public results, picked to show a range rather than the biggest numbers. Each turned on its own facts. CrashFirst has no results of its own and does not say you would get anything like them.

The problems here

Unpaid medical bills and uninsured drivers, where you live

When the other side has no insurance, or the bills keep coming before anything is settled, the money problem is real. These are the local numbers we could source.

6.1%of Tennessee people with a credit record had medical debt in collections (median $1,473), Aug. 2026Only counts medical debt that reached collections and sits on a credit file. The national share was 3.0%.Source: Urban Institute (Tennessee row, medcoll = .0607489; medcollpos_p50 = 1473).
7.4%of people in Shelby County, TN with a credit record had medical debt in collections (median $1,280), Aug. 2026Only counts medical debt that reached collections and sits on a credit file. The national share was 3.0%.Source: Urban Institute (Shelby County (FIPS 47157), medcoll = .0735649; medcollpos_p50 = 1280).
21.3%of Tennessee drivers estimated to be uninsured, 2023The Insurance Research Council estimates this from insurance claims, not from a count of cars. The national estimate was 15.4%.Source: Triple-I / IRC (Estimated Percentage of Uninsured Motorists by State, 2023).
About these numbers
  • 6.1% Only counts medical debt that reached collections and sits on a credit file. The national share was 3.0%.
  • 7.4% Only counts medical debt that reached collections and sits on a credit file. The national share was 3.0%.
  • 21.3% The Insurance Research Council estimates this from insurance claims, not from a count of cars. The national estimate was 15.4%.
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Crash report

How to get your Memphis crash report.

  1. Find out who responded. City streets are usually Memphis Police (MPD). Interstates and state highways are usually the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP). A county sheriff may handle other roads. The officer's card or slip will say.
  2. Get the report or tracking number from the officer at the scene. If you don't have it, call the agency and give your name, the date and the place.
  3. If MPD wrote it: request it from MPD Central Records, online, in person or by mail. In person: 170 North Main St., 7th Floor, Suite 7-11, Memphis, TN 38103, Monday to Friday 8:30am to 4pm. Bring a valid ID. Phone 901-636-3650.
  4. Fees (MPD): $0.15 per page for Tennessee residents, $15 for non-residents, $15 to have it emailed.
  5. If THP wrote it: buy it on the State of Tennessee crash report site ($10 online, card only) or from the THP district office ($4). You'll need the crash date, the county, a driver's name and the agency tracking number. THP reports are generally available about 7 days after the crash.
How long until MPD's report is ready?

MPD's Central Records page does not list a wait time. Call Central Records at 901-636-3650 and ask whether your report is ready.

If something in the report looks wrong, ask the agency how to request a correction. Don't guess. A person on our team can help you work out which agency to call. Full guide: how to get a Memphis police crash report, with the online portal, mail options and every fee.

Sources: Memphis Police Dept., Central Records · State of Tennessee, purchase a crash report. Fees and hours change; confirm on the official page before you go.

The deadline

Tennessee's time limit is short.

In most Tennessee injury cases, a lawsuit has to be filed within one year of the date of the injury. The law is Tenn. Code Ann. § 28-3-104. Our deadline calculator shows the date and the statute.

There are exceptions.

The period can be two years when criminal charges are brought against someone who caused the crash. Other rules can apply to children, or to claims against a city or other government body, and those can be shorter. Whether an exception applies to you is a question for an attorney.

Insurance claims have their own deadlines, and having a claim open does not stop the lawsuit clock. If you're close to a year, or past it, only a licensed Tennessee attorney can tell you whether an exception applies. Every Tennessee deadline, with the statute text, is on our statute of limitations page. A printable version: the Tennessee deadline explainer.

Source: Tenn. Code Ann. § 28-3-104, Justia. We're not lawyers. This is general information, not legal advice.

First 72 hours

A calm list for the first three days.

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Local facts

Crashes in Shelby County.

259Motor-vehicle deaths in Shelby County, 2023NHTSA FARS, 2015-2024 analysis
218Motor-vehicle deaths in Shelby County, 2024NHTSA FARS, 2015-2024 analysis
487People on foot killed in Shelby County crashes, 2015 to 2024NHTSA FARS, 2015-2024 analysis

Counts differ by source because agencies define crashes differently. Deaths are only part of the picture; many more people are hurt. Our own full analysis: the Memphis Crash Report 2026.

More in Memphis

The state rules

Deadlines, fault and reports for all of Tennessee are in the Tennessee reference.

Keep reading

Sources

Page last updated November 10, 2026. Attorney review pending. General information, not legal advice. Fees, hours and rules change; confirm on the official page. How we source.

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