What Should I Do Immediately After a Car Accident?
Start with safety. Then protect the information you may need for the insurance and repair process.
Short answer
If anyone may be injured or there is immediate danger, contact 911 and follow first-responder instructions. Once you are safe, stop at the scene, exchange required information, document what you safely can, report the loss to your insurer, and begin deciding what your vehicle needs next.
1. Make safety the first priority
Before thinking about estimates, insurance or repairs, determine whether anyone may be injured and whether the crash scene presents an immediate danger. If emergency help may be needed, call 911 and follow the instructions of police, fire or medical responders.
If your vehicle is in a dangerous traffic position, follow police instructions and move yourself to a safer location when you can do so safely. Do not remain in traffic just to take photographs.
2. Stop and exchange information
In New York, a driver involved in a crash must stop. Even when the crash involves property damage only, drivers must exchange identifying, driver-license, registration and insurance information.
Information worth collecting
- Driver names and contact information
- Driver-license information
- Vehicle registration and license plate numbers
- Insurance company and policy information
- Police or incident-report information when available
- Names and contact information for witnesses, when appropriate
3. Photograph the scene when it is safe
Photographs can preserve details that are easy to forget later. Take wide views of the scene as well as closer photographs of visible vehicle damage. Include license plates, vehicle positions, road conditions, signs or signals and anything else that helps explain the surroundings.
Do not put yourself in traffic or another dangerous location to get a better photograph.
4. Understand New York crash-report requirements
New York has separate reporting requirements depending on the circumstances. For example, the DMV states that a motorist crash report is required when a crash causes a fatality, personal injury or more than $1,000 in damage to the property of any one person. The report generally must be filed within 10 days.
Use the current New York DMV instructions or ask the responding police agency when you are unsure.
5. Report the loss and organize your claim information
Once immediate safety issues are addressed, report the loss according to your insurance policy and keep your claim number, adjuster information, estimates, photographs and repair communications together.
You do not need to understand every insurance term before making the report. The important thing is to create a clear record and then work through the next decisions one at a time.
6. Decide what your vehicle needs next
A vehicle that looks relatively minor from the outside may still require a closer inspection. If you notice fluid leakage, wheel or suspension damage, warning lights, steering or braking changes, airbag deployment or anything else that makes you question drivability, treat that as a safety concern rather than a cosmetic question.
If you are unsure where to go from here, Guide Me can take you from the accident stage into insurance, shop selection, inspection and repair.
Key takeaways
Safety comes before documentation or insurance.
Exchange and retain the information required after the crash.
Photograph what you safely can, then organize the claim and repair information.
If drivability is uncertain, have the vehicle appropriately assessed instead of relying on appearance alone.
Where this information comes from
Where a topic depends on New York law, insurance rules or vehicle-safety information, we point to authoritative sources so you can verify the underlying guidance.
This resource provides general consumer information and is not legal advice. Insurance coverage, claim circumstances, repair requirements and vehicle condition vary.
Guide Me can help identify your next step.
You do not need to know which article you need or what the insurance terminology means.