Free Case Evaluation
Let's See If You Have a Case...
Report an Injury Crash to the California DMV Within 10 Days
If anyone was hurt in a California crash, even slightly, every driver involved must report it to the DMV within 10 days on form SR 1.
The same rule applies when one person's property damage is over $1,000, or when someone died.
It does not matter who caused the crash.
A police report does not count, and the officer will not file the SR-1 for you.
Skipping it can cost you your license until the DMV receives the report.
The SR-1 is not an injury claim and does not notify your insurer, so it is the first of several deadlines after a crash.
If you were hurt and want to talk through what comes after the SR-1, call (888) 713-6653.
At a Glance: The California SR-1
- Each driver files within 10 days if anyone was injured, anyone died, or one person's property damage was over $1,000, under Vehicle Code § 16000
- Required regardless of fault, and in addition to any police or insurance report
- File online at dmv.ca.gov/accidentreport or by mail; an insurance agent or attorney can file it for you
- No report means a suspension until the DMV receives it; no insurance at the time of the crash means a suspension of at least one year
- A separate written report to the CHP or police is due within 24 hours of a crash with an injury or death, under § 20008
Who Must File an SR-1 Under Vehicle Code § 16000
Section 16000 puts the duty on "the driver of a motor vehicle who is in any manner involved in an accident" that results in "damage to the property of any one person in excess of one thousand dollars ($1,000), or in bodily injury, or in the death of any person."[1] The report goes to the DMV in Sacramento within 10 days.
- Every driver files. The DMV says the SR-1 is required "regardless of fault," so the driver who was rear-ended files, and so does the driver who caused the crash.
- Any injury counts. The DMV's own guidance says a report is required no matter how minor the injury.
- Off-road crashes can count. A crash off the highway with a registered vehicle can be reportable under the same thresholds.
- Someone else may file. If the driver is physically unable and is not the owner, the owner reports. A driver in an employer's vehicle reports to the employer within 5 days, and the employer files with the DMV.
A driver of a vehicle owned by a government agency is exempt from filing, but the other drivers in that crash still file their own reports.
For an injured driver, the 10 days start on the day of the crash, usually while the injury is still being diagnosed, so the report is worth doing in the first week.
What the SR-1 Form Asks For, Including Your Insurance Policy Number
The form is short, but it is signed under penalty of perjury, and the insurance section matters more than anything else on it.[2]
What the SR 1 Asks For
The drivers, owners, and vehicles involved, with plates or VINs.
Your insurance company's name (the company, not the agent or broker), the policy number, the policy period, and the policyholder.
Everyone injured or killed, by name and current address, and any other property damaged.
Your signature, under penalty of perjury.
The DMV may send the insurance portion to the company you list to confirm coverage. If the insurance section is left incomplete, the form warns, the DMV will assume you were not insured and suspend your license.
You can file online through the DMV's accident reporting page or mail the form to the DMV Insurance Unit, Mail Station J237, P.O. Box 942884, Sacramento, CA 94284-0884. An insurance agent, broker, or attorney can file it on your behalf.
Keep a copy of what you filed, with the date, because it is the record that you met the 10-day deadline.
License Suspension for an Unreported Crash or a Lapse in Insurance
Two different suspensions can follow a crash, and they work differently.
- No report. Under § 16004, the DMV suspends the license of a driver who "fails, refuses, or neglects to make a report," and the suspension lasts until the report or proof of insurance arrives.
- No insurance at the time of the crash. Under § 16070, the DMV sends a notice, and the suspension starts 30 days later unless you prove coverage. You have 10 days to ask for a hearing.
- How long it lasts. Under § 16072, at least one year and until proof of insurance is filed, and it comes back if that proof lapses within three years.[3] A restricted license for work and school driving is available with proof on file and a $250 fee.
The DMV's handbook says an uninsured driver can lose the license for up to four years after a crash, and "it does not matter who was at fault."
An uninsured driver hit by someone else faces a second loss as well, because Proposition 213 bars pain-and-suffering damages, as our page on Proposition 213 and uninsured drivers explains.
The Separate 24-Hour Report to the CHP or Police Under § 20008
A crash with an injury or a death carries a second, faster report. Under Vehicle Code § 20008, every driver involved, other than a common carrier, must make a written report to the California Highway Patrol, or inside a city to the CHP or the city police, within 24 hours.[4] If the driver cannot make it, an occupant does.
- At the scene: a driver in a crash that hurt someone must stop, give their name, address, and registration, and give reasonable help to anyone injured, under §§ 20001 and 20003
- Information exchange: § 16025 requires drivers to exchange license numbers, the owner's address, and insurance information, including the policy number
- Starting in 2027: AB 2761, signed in September 2026, renames these "crash" reports and moves police reports to electronic filing, without changing the driver's 24-hour duty[5]
The DMV report, the police report, and the insurance claim are three separate records, and a crash with an injury usually needs all three.
Who Can See Your SR-1 Under Vehicle Code § 16005
The SR-1 is not a public record. Section 16005 says reports made under this law "shall be without prejudice to the individual so reporting and shall be for the confidential use of the department."
The DMV does release some basics to anyone with a proper interest in the crash, including the drivers, the people injured, owners of damaged property, law enforcement, and the courts.
- The names and addresses of the people involved
- The license plates and descriptions of the vehicles
- The date, time, and place of the crash
- The names and addresses of the insurers, and any suspension action
That last item helps an injured person when the other driver left without sharing insurance information or gave a policy that turned out to be wrong.
What to Write on an SR-1 When You Were Hurt in the Crash
The SR-1 asks for facts, and facts are all it should contain.
- List every injured person, including yourself, even if the injury seemed minor at the scene. The statute requires the names and addresses of anyone complaining of injury.
- Describe what happened in a sentence or two, without guessing at speeds, distances, or who was at fault.
- Do not describe your injuries as minor or predict how they will heal. Many injuries are worse a week later than at the scene.
- Check the insurance details against your card or policy before you sign, because a mistake there can trigger a suspension.
Because the form is signed under penalty of perjury, accuracy protects you, and leaving out speculation means there is nothing on it to argue about later.
If you are unsure how to describe the crash, an attorney or your insurance agent can file the report for you within the same 10 days.
Your Insurer, Your Doctor, and the Other Deadlines That Start the Same Day
Filing the SR-1 satisfies the DMV and nothing else. Several other clocks start on the day of the crash.
- Your own insurance company. The SR-1 does not notify your insurer under your policy. Report the crash to your insurer directly, especially if you may need your uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage. A California insurer that denies a claim for late notice has to prove the delay caused it real harm, but prompt notice avoids that fight.
- A hit-and-run. An uninsured motorist claim for an unidentified driver requires a report to police or the CHP within 24 hours, as our page on uninsured motorist and hit-and-run claims explains.
- A public vehicle or road. A crash involving a city bus, a county truck, or a dangerous road needs a written government claim within six months.
- The lawsuit. Most California injury claims must be filed within two years, under the rules on our page about California injury filing deadlines.
See a doctor promptly as well, because the medical record started in the first days is the record an insurer will measure your injury by.