Florida car accident reporting rules require every driver involved in a crash to stop at the scene, exchange names and vehicle information, help anyone who is hurt, and make sure the crash gets reported, either by a responding officer or by the driver filing a written self-report with the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles within 10 days. Skipping any of these steps can turn a minor incident into a traffic fine, a misdemeanor, or in the worst cases a first-degree felony, and it can wreck an insurance claim before it starts.
What You Must Do at the Scene
Florida Statute 316.062 lays out three duties for every driver in a crash where another person or their property is involved.1Justia Law. Florida Code 316.062 – Duty to Give Information and Render Aid
- Stop immediately and stay at or as close to the scene as safely possible until you have completed every required step.
- Give your name, address, and vehicle registration number to anyone injured, to the other driver or property owner, and to any responding officer. Show your driver’s license if asked.
- Provide reasonable assistance to anyone hurt, including arranging transportation to a hospital if treatment appears necessary or the injured person requests it.
If no one at the scene is in a condition to receive your information and no officer is present, you must report the crash to the nearest police authority as soon as possible and give them the same information.
When Police Are Required to Write a Report
Not every crash brings an officer with a clipboard. Under Florida Statute 316.066, a law enforcement officer who investigates a crash must complete a Florida Traffic Crash Report (Long Form) and submit it to FLHSMV within 10 days when any of these are true:2Justia Law. Florida Code 316.066 – Written Reports of Crashes
- Someone involved reports pain, suffers an injury, or dies.
- A driver was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
- A vehicle had to be towed from the scene.
- A commercial motor vehicle was involved.
If your crash hits any of those, call the police. They will handle the report. If it hits none of them, you still have a reporting obligation of your own.
When You Have to Self-Report Within 10 Days
When a crash causes only vehicle or property damage and does not meet the thresholds above, the driver has to file a written report with FLHSMV within 10 days. The form is FLHSMV 90011S, and you can submit it by email to SelfReportCrashes@flhsmv.gov or by mail to the FLHSMV Self Report Crash Team in Tallahassee.2Justia Law. Florida Code 316.066 – Written Reports of Crashes
This is where drivers get tripped up. A parking-lot scrape where nobody was hurt and both cars drove away still needs a self-report if there is visible damage. Ignoring it is a noncriminal traffic infraction, and the missing report tends to cause problems with your insurer later.
Hitting a Parked Car or Unattended Property
Clipping a parked car or knocking over a mailbox falls under Florida Statute 316.063. You must stop and then either find the owner and give them your name, address, and registration number, or leave a written note in a visible place on the damaged property and notify the nearest police authority without unnecessary delay.3Justia Law. Florida Code 316.063 – Duty Upon Damaging Unattended Vehicle or Other Property
Driving off without doing either is a second-degree misdemeanor. That means up to 60 days in jail and a fine of up to $500 for a scrape a driver panicked over.
Penalties for Failing to Report or Leaving the Scene
Traffic Infractions
Failing to provide the required information at the scene or failing to file a self-report is a noncriminal traffic infraction, punished as a nonmoving violation.1Justia Law. Florida Code 316.062 – Duty to Give Information and Render Aid The base fine is $30 under Florida’s penalty schedule, and court costs and surcharges typically push the total higher.4Online Sunshine. Florida Code 318.18 – Amount of Penalties
Hit-and-Run Felonies
The stakes climb fast when a driver leaves the scene of a crash involving injury or death. Florida Statute 316.027 creates three felony tiers.5Justia Law. Florida Code 316.027 – Crash Involving Death or Personal Injuries
- Leaving the scene of a crash with a non-serious injury is a third-degree felony, punishable by up to 5 years in prison.6Justia Law. Florida Code 775.082 – Penalties and Applicability of Sentencing Structures
- Leaving the scene of a crash involving serious bodily injury (an injury creating a substantial risk of death, serious disfigurement, or long-term loss of a bodily function) is a second-degree felony, punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
- Leaving the scene of a crash involving death is a first-degree felony, with a mandatory minimum of 4 years in prison and a maximum of 30 years. If the driver was also under the influence, the same 4-year minimum applies and DUI penalties stack on top.
Any conviction under these tiers also carries a mandatory driver’s license revocation of at least 3 years.
How Reporting Affects Your Insurance Claim
The 14-Day PIP Deadline
Every Florida vehicle owner has to carry at least $10,000 in Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage. PIP pays 80 percent of reasonable medical expenses regardless of who caused the crash, but only if you receive initial medical services and care within 14 days of the accident.7Florida Senate. Florida Code 627.736 – Required Personal Injury Protection Benefits That first visit must be with a qualifying provider: a physician, a dentist (for jaw or dental injuries), a chiropractor, an advanced practice registered nurse, or through a hospital or emergency services. A phone call to a doctor’s office does not count.
Miss the 14-day window and PIP medical coverage disappears. You will be responsible for 100 percent of your own medical bills. Skipping the crash report often delays treatment because people assume the incident was minor, and that assumption is what closes the window.
Policy Consequences
Most policies also require prompt notification after a crash. Skip the report or wait too long and your insurer may deny the claim outright, leaving you personally on the hook for your damages and any damage you caused. A pattern of unreported incidents or late reporting can also drive up your renewal premium, or lead to cancellation or nonrenewal.
How Reporting Affects a Lawsuit
Comparative Fault
Florida uses modified comparative negligence. A court assigns each party a percentage of fault, and your damages are reduced by your share. If you are found 20 percent at fault, you recover 80 percent of your damages. If you are found more than 50 percent responsible for your own harm, you recover nothing.8Florida Senate. Florida Code 768.81 – Comparative Fault
Failing to report does not directly change your fault percentage, but it creates practical problems. Without a police report documenting the scene, witness statements, and initial observations, the other side has room to argue you were more at fault than you were.
What You Say for the Report Cannot Be Used at Trial
Statements you make to an officer for the purpose of completing a crash report cannot be used as evidence against you in any civil or criminal trial.2Justia Law. Florida Code 316.066 – Written Reports of Crashes The statute is meant to encourage honest reporting without fear of self-incrimination. An officer can still testify about your statements at a criminal trial as long as doing so does not violate your privilege against self-incrimination, and blood-alcohol test results remain separately admissible. The report itself still matters outside the courtroom, because insurance adjusters and attorneys rely on it to build a case.
Getting a Copy of the Crash Report
Crash reports are not immediately public. Under Section 316.066, reports that reveal personal information about the parties involved are confidential for 60 days after filing.2Justia Law. Florida Code 316.066 – Written Reports of Crashes During that window, access is limited to:
- The parties involved in the crash
- Their attorneys or licensed insurance agents
- Their insurance companies or insurers they have applied to
- Law enforcement agencies
- Victim services programs
- Government agencies carrying out official functions
After 60 days, the report becomes a public record. You can request a copy through FLHSMV or the local law enforcement agency, typically for a small fee. If the report contains errors, you can submit a written correction request to the investigating agency, though amendments are not easy and generally require supporting evidence.9Florida Senate. Florida Code 316.066 – Written Reports of Crashes Get your copy early. It is the starting point for almost every claim and every case.