Portland Hit and Run Laws: Penalties, DMV Report, and Deadlines

Portland hit and run laws come from Oregon’s statewide statutes, which make it a crime to leave any crash scene without stopping, exchanging information, and helping anyone who is hurt. The offense ranges from a Class A misdemeanor when only property is damaged to a Class B felony when someone is seriously injured or killed.¹ If someone hit you and fled, your own insurance likely covers the damage, but you have tight deadlines to meet first.

What Oregon Treats as a Hit and Run

Leaving the scene is a separate crime from whatever caused the collision. Fault does not matter. Even if the other driver ran a red light and struck you, driving off without exchanging information is itself a criminal offense.

Two statutes split the duty by severity. When only property is damaged, the driver must stop, locate the owner, and exchange information, or leave a written note with name, address, registration, insurer, policy number, and a description of what happened. When someone is hurt or killed, the driver must stay at the scene, give identifying and insurance information to the other driver, any passengers, or any injured person, show a license on request, and provide reasonable help, which includes arranging transportation to a hospital when medical treatment is clearly needed or requested.²

These duties apply on any premises open to the public, not only on public roads.

Criminal Penalties

Leaving a property-damage-only collision is a Class A misdemeanor. The maximum penalties are up to 364 days in jail and a fine of up to $6,250.¹³

Leaving a scene where someone was injured is a Class C felony. The maximum exposure is five years in prison and a fine of up to $125,000.²⁴⁵

When the collision causes serious physical injury or death, the charge becomes a Class B felony, with up to 10 years in prison and fines up to $250,000.²⁴⁵

License Revocation on Top of the Criminal Case

The DMV revokes driving privileges for any conviction involving injury or death, and the clock on serious cases does not start running until the driver is out of custody:

Injury: one-year revocation.
Serious physical injury: three-year revocation, measured from release from incarceration when prison is part of the sentence.
Death: five-year revocation, also measured from release from incarceration when applicable.

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Getting a license back after any of these revocations requires proof of future financial responsibility on file with the DMV.⁷

What to Do If a Driver Hits You and Flees

Move out of traffic if you can. Call 911 if anyone is hurt. If no one is injured and you do not know who the other driver was, Portland Police let you file through their Community Online Reporting system or by calling the non-emergency line at 503-823-3333. If there are injuries or you have information about the suspect, use the non-emergency line rather than the online form.⁸

Collect what you can before memory fades and evidence disappears:

The make, model, color, and any plate characters you caught, even partial ones.
The direction the vehicle left and the time of the crash.
Names and phone numbers for any witnesses.
Photos of paint transfer, debris, skid marks, and damage from several angles.
Dashcam footage, saved immediately so it is not overwritten.

Filing a police report creates the official record your insurer will ask for, and it is also a condition of applying for state crime victim compensation if you were hurt.

The 72-Hour DMV Report

Separate from the police report, Oregon law requires the driver to submit the Oregon Traffic Collision and Insurance Report (Form 735-32) directly to the DMV within 72 hours.⁹ An officer’s report at the scene does not satisfy this duty. The requirement applies to you as a victim, too, when the other driver is unknown.

You must file when any of these apply:

Any injury or death.
Damage to your vehicle over $2,500.
Damage to any vehicle over $2,500 and any involved vehicle is towed from the scene.
Damage over $2,500 to property other than the vehicles involved.

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The fastest route is DMV2U online, which works if you have an Oregon license, permit, or ID number. Otherwise, download the form, pick one up at a DMV office or local law enforcement office, or call DMV Customer Assistance at 503-945-5000.¹⁰ Keep a copy. Missing the deadline is a Class B traffic violation.⁹

How Your Own Insurance Pays

When the other driver is gone, your policy carries the recovery. Oregon requires two coverages that apply directly.

Personal injury protection is mandatory on every private passenger vehicle policy at a minimum of $15,000 per person.¹¹ PIP pays medical bills, lost income, and essential services for you, household family members, passengers in your car, and pedestrians your car strikes, regardless of fault. You do not need to identify the hit-and-run driver to collect.¹²

Uninsured motorist coverage is also mandatory on every Oregon liability policy. A hit-and-run driver who cannot be identified counts as uninsured, so UM applies directly. Your UM limits match your bodily injury liability limits unless you elected lower limits in writing, and they can never fall below Oregon’s minimum liability requirements.¹³

For damage to the car itself, collision coverage pays if you carry it, though you will usually owe your deductible because the at-fault driver has not been identified. If police later find the driver and their insurance pays, you can recover the deductible then.

Notify your insurer promptly. Most policies do not set a hard deadline, but delays give insurers grounds to question or deny a claim, and they will want to see both your police report and your DMV collision report.

Deadlines for Suing and for Crime Victim Compensation

Oregon gives you two years from the date of the collision to file a personal injury lawsuit, whether or not you yet know who hit you.¹⁴ If the driver is identified later, you can sue for damages beyond what insurance covers, but only inside that window. Property damage claims carry a longer six-year period.

If you were physically injured, you may also qualify for the Oregon Crime Victims’ Compensation Program through the Department of Justice, which can cover medical costs, rehabilitation, and lost wages. Auto and health insurance are tapped first; CVC fills the gaps. You must have reported the hit and run to law enforcement to be eligible.¹⁵

1
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 811.700 – Failure to Perform Duties of Driver When Property Is Damaged Penalty
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Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 811.705 – Failure to Perform Duties of Driver to Injured Persons Penalty
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Oregon Revised Statutes. Oregon Code 161.635 – Fines for Misdemeanors
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Oregon Revised Statutes. Oregon Code 161.605 – Maximum Terms of Imprisonment for Felonies
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Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 161.625 – Fines for Felonies
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Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 809.409 – Revocation for Failure to Perform Duties of Driver
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Oregon Department of Transportation. Suspensions Revocations and Cancellations
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Portland.gov. Police Report Online Submission
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Oregon Revised Statutes. Oregon Code 811.725 – Driver Failure to Report Accident to Department of Transportation
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Oregon Department of Transportation. Collision Reporting and Responsibilities
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Oregon Department of Transportation. Insurance Requirements
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Oregon Revised Statutes. Oregon Code 742.520 – Personal Injury Protection Benefits for Motor Vehicles
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Oregon Revised Statutes. Oregon Code 742.502 – Uninsured Motorist Coverage
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Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 12.110 – Actions for Certain Injuries to Person Not Arising on Contract
15
Oregon Department of Justice. Compensation for Victims of Crime