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Accident Reporting and Responsibilities

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Within 72 Hours of a motor vehicle crash, you are required to submit an Oregon Traffic Accident and Insurance Report with DMV.  The report must contain the following:
  • Your name, date of birth, driver license number, and mailing address;
  • Information about the vehicle you were operating when the crash occurred, including vehicle license plate number, State where the vehicle is registered, vehicle identification number, year, make and model; and
  • Insurance company name (not agent) and insurance policy number. 
Filing a report without vehicle information and insurance information may result in DMV issuing a suspension of driving privileges notice.  

You must submit a report of a motor vehicle accident to DMV when:
  • Damage to any vehicle is over $2,500 (even if your vehicle was the only one in the crash);
  • Any vehicle is towed from the scene;
  • Injury or death resulted from this accident; or
  • Damages to anyone’s property other than a vehicle involved in this accident is more than $2,500.

If you do not file a report when required, Oregon law requires DMV to issue a suspension notice.

If you were in an accident and the damages were less than $2,500, you can report to DMV if the other party doesn't have insurance. Be sure to clearly note on the accident report that it doesn't meet mandatory reporting criteria.

Note:  A police report does not count as filing an accident report with DMV. You must also file an accident report with DMV.

​Fill out an Accident and Insurance Report Form

To get the form:

Within 72 hours of a motor vehicle crash, you are required to submit an Oregon Traffic Accident and Insurance Report with DMV. The report must contain the following: 
  • Your name, date of birth, driver license number, and mailing address; 
  • Information about the vehicle you were operating when the crash occurred, including vehicle license plate number, State where the vehicle is registered, vehicle identification number, year, make and model; and
  • Insurance company name (not agent) and insurance policy number.

When you have completed the form, the best way to file your accident report is to send it by mail or email directly to the DMV Crash Reporting Unit:
  • Email to OregonDMVAccidents@odot.oregon.gov 
    • DMV will send an auto-reply confirming that your email was received.
    • Save your sent email (with the report) and the auto-reply received from DMV.
    • Please do not mail or fax reports already sent by email.
  • Regular mail to DMV Crash Reporting Unit at 1905 Lana Ave NE, Salem, OR 97314 
    • If you send a report by email, please do not also mail the report. This may cause a delay.
Additional Important Information: 
Under Oregon law ORS 802.220(5), DMV cannot give you a copy of your report. Please make a copy for your records.
​​Liability Insurance

If you did not have liability insurance at the time of the accident, we will suspend your license for one year. Then:

  • You must then file an SR-22 before we will reinstate your license.
  • An SR-22 filing is required for three years after the suspension end date even if the accident was not your fault.

Insurance companies and agents must tell DMV about any accident when they believe a driver is uninsured. If the information is correct, we will suspend the driver license of the uninsured person for one year. This law applies even if the damage is $2,500 or less.

Important Information: 
DMV sends suspension notices and other important documents to your address on record with DMV. The postal service cannot forward DMV mail to a forwarding address, so keep your address updated on DMV2U​.

You must immediately notify police if you are a driver involved in an accident meeting any of the same criteria required under DMV Accident Reporting Requirements (see above).

Use a non-emergency police phone number.

If you have a traffic accident, you must:

Stop at Once

Stop at the accident scene or as close as possible without blocking or endangering other traffic. "Hit and run" is a serious crime. Conviction will mean your driving privileges will be revoked or suspended.

Render Aid

Give aid to injured people. Remember, injured people should never be moved carelessly. In many cases, they should not be moved at all except by emergency staff or someone trained in first aid. If someone is killed or unconscious, the driver must remain at the scene until a police officer arrives. If you don’t, you are guilty of "hit and run."

Exchange Information (printable checklist to keep in your car)

Give the other driver, passengers in the vehicle, or any injured pedestrian your:

  • Name;
  • Address;
  • Driver license number;
  • License plate number; and
  • Your insurance information.

Report the Accident to DMV (instructions above)

​If you hit an unoccupied vehicle, try to find the owner. If you can't find the owner, leave a note that says you are the person who hit the vehicle and how to contact you. By law, ORS 811.700(1)(B), you must write your name and address on the note, and a brief description of what happened.
 
If you damage property other than a vehicle, you also must try to find the owner or someone in charge of the property to report the damage.

If you hit and injure an animal:

  • Stop and check the extent of injury;
  • Try to get the animal out of the way of traffic if it’s safe to do so;
  • Immediately report the animal's injuries to its owner; or
  • If you can't find the owner, report the injuries to the nearest police agency.

If you have a crash on the highway and you have no injury, you should move your vehicle over to the shoulder if it’s safe to do so. This helps keep traffic moving. You will also avoid getting a ticket for failure to remove your vehicle.


Frequently Asked Questions

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