To get a copy of a police report in Florida online, use one of two paths depending on what the report covers. For a traffic crash, buy the report through the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles’ online crash portal for $10, plus a $2 transaction fee.1Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Traffic Crash Reports For any other incident report — theft, assault, vandalism, a domestic disturbance — request it directly from the law enforcement agency that responded, most of which now accept online requests through their records division websites.
Buying a Crash Report Through the State Portal
The FLHSMV runs a single statewide portal for crash reports, and it covers reports filed by any Florida agency, not just the Florida Highway Patrol. You search by report number, name, or other identifying details, pay electronically, and download the PDF. Reports are available immediately after purchase and must be downloaded within 48 hours.2Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Buy Florida Crash Reports
Before you start, pull together the full names of the people involved, the date and location of the crash, and the case or report number if you have it. The report number is the fastest way to find the record; without it, the portal searches by name and date, which can be slower and sometimes returns nothing if a detail is off.
The fee is set by statute at $10 per report.3The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 321.23 – Reports; Fees The $2 convenience fee is charged per transaction, so if you need several reports at once, buying them together keeps that fee at $2 total.1Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Traffic Crash Reports
The 60-Day Confidentiality Window
Florida law keeps crash reports confidential for the first 60 days after filing. During that window, personal information about the people involved — names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, and driver license numbers — is not available to the general public.4Justia Law. Florida Code 316.066 – Written Reports of Crashes
You can still buy a crash report online inside those 60 days, but only if you fall into one of the authorized categories: parties to the crash and their legal representatives, licensed insurers and their agents or contractors connected to the parties, law enforcement agencies and their contracted providers, victim services programs, and federal, state, or local government agencies acting in an official capacity. Licensed media outlets can obtain a version with home addresses, phone numbers, and dates of birth removed.4Justia Law. Florida Code 316.066 – Written Reports of Crashes
To buy the report during the window, you have to submit a written sworn statement confirming you will not use the information to solicit crash victims commercially. The FLHSMV publishes a standard form for this, Form 94010, which combines the sworn statement with an identification section and requires notarization.5Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Form 94010 A separate sworn statement is required for each report you request. After day 60, the Florida-specific confidentiality lifts and access broadens to anyone with a recognized purpose under federal driver privacy rules, which in practice covers most legitimate reasons such as an insurance claim, a lawsuit, or an employment inquiry.4Justia Law. Florida Code 316.066 – Written Reports of Crashes
Requesting a Non-Crash Incident Report Online
Incident reports that don’t involve a traffic crash — burglary, battery, criminal mischief, and similar matters — are public records under Chapter 119. They aren’t sold through the state crash portal. Instead, you request them from the agency that responded, and most Florida police departments and sheriff’s offices now have an online records request form or portal on their website. Some deliver the report by email; others let you log in and download it once staff have processed the request.
Have the case number ready if you can. Without it, records staff search by name, date, and location, and small errors can slow the search. Turnaround for online requests varies by agency and by how complex the report is.
One category is not available while it remains open: reports tied to an active criminal investigation, meaning one where the agency reasonably expects to make an arrest or bring charges. The agency can withhold the report or redact portions that would compromise the case, and that exemption lasts through any prosecution or appeal. Once the case concludes or the investigation goes inactive, the record generally becomes available on request.
Fees for non-crash reports follow the general public records schedule: up to 15 cents per one-sided page, an extra 5 cents for two-sided copies, and up to $1 per page for certified copies.6Florida Senate. Florida Code 119.07 – Inspection and Copying of Records For large requests that take significant staff or IT time, an agency can add a reasonable special service charge based on actual labor. Some agencies waive fees when a crime victim asks for a copy of their own report; ask when you submit the request.
One reason information may be missing when you open the file: Florida’s constitutional victim privacy provisions, often called Marsy’s Law, let crime victims request that details which could be used to locate or contact them, such as an address, phone number, or workplace, be redacted from otherwise public records.
Figuring Out Which Agency to Ask
Non-crash requests only work if you send them to the right agency. City police departments handle incidents inside city limits, county sheriff’s offices cover unincorporated areas, and the Florida Highway Patrol usually responds to crashes on state highways and interstates. If you aren’t sure which agency wrote the report, the fastest way to find out is to call the non-emergency line for the jurisdiction where the incident happened.
If Your Online Request Is Denied
Ask for the denial in writing and have the agency identify the specific statutory exemption it is relying on. Agencies sometimes deny requests without a solid legal basis, and a written explanation forces a specific citation you can evaluate.
If you believe the denial is unlawful, Florida law requires you to send a written notice to the agency’s custodian of public records identifying the record and to wait at least five business days before filing suit. If a court later finds the agency withheld the record unlawfully, the agency must pay your reasonable attorney fees and enforcement costs, which makes hiring counsel realistic even for a single record.7The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 119.12 – Attorney Fees
Fixing Errors After You Read the Report
Only the agency that wrote the report can change it. For plain factual mistakes, such as a misspelled name, a wrong date, or a transposed address, calling the officer who filed the report is usually enough. Substantive disputes about what happened, fault, or missing witness statements require a formal amendment request, which some agencies handle online and others in person. Bring supporting evidence: photographs, medical records, witness statements, or video.
If the disagreement comes down to conflicting accounts rather than a provable error, the agency will often decline to change the original but will attach a supplemental report presenting your version. The supplemental doesn’t replace the original, but it travels with the record and can matter if the report later becomes evidence in an insurance claim or lawsuit.