What to Do After a Car Accident in Washington, D.C.: Step by Step

At the scene of a Washington, D.C. crash, step by step

The first twenty minutes decide what evidence exists. None of it can be recreated later.

Stop and make the scene safe

Turn on your hazard lights. If the cars are drivable and nobody is hurt, move them out of the travel lanes, because a second impact on a road like the Anacostia Freeway or South Capitol Street is a real risk. If they are not drivable, stay belted inside rather than standing in traffic.

Call 911 and stay until police arrive

Call 911, say where you are and whether anyone is hurt, and ask for an ambulance if there is any doubt. If an officer responds, get the name and badge number. If no officer comes, the entire record of the scene is whatever you gathered yourself.

Exchange information

Collect the other driver's name, address, phone number, license number, plate, insurance company and policy number, and the vehicle owner's name if it is not the driver. Photograph the documents rather than copying them by hand. If the driver refuses, photograph the plate and tell the officer.

Photograph and record

Take far more photos than feel necessary: both vehicles from every corner, the damage close up, the resting positions before anything moves, skid marks, debris, the signal facing each direction, the lane markings, the weather, your injuries. Then record a voice memo. You will not remember the signal sequence in eight months.

Find witnesses and cameras

Get the name and mobile number of anyone who saw it, including passengers in other cars. Then look up. Corner stores, apartment lobbies, garages and office entrances all have cameras, and most overwrite within days. Write down the exact addresses so a preservation letter can go out that week.

What not to say

Do not apologize, do not guess at speeds, and do not say you are fine. In the District, where contributory negligence can bar a claim over any share of fault, a polite "I didn't see him" is the most expensive sentence you can say. Give the officer only what you know: direction, lane, signal color.

The first 48 hours after a District crash

Two days decide whether you have a medical record, coverage and a report. None of it happens automatically.

Get examined the same day

Go to an emergency department or urgent care the day of the crash, then to your own doctor within a few days. Concussions and disc injuries often feel worse on day three, and a gap before the first visit is the most common causation argument an adjuster makes. MedStar Washington Hospital Center, George Washington University Hospital and Howard University Hospital all take walk in crash patients.

Notify your own insurer

Report the crash to your own carrier promptly, as the policy requires, even if the other driver was clearly at fault. Late notice can forfeit your own coverage, including the uninsured motorist benefits you may need. Give your providers the claim number. You do not owe the other driver's carrier anything.

The short window to elect no fault benefits

The District allows an optional no fault election under D.C. Code 31-2404. If your policy includes personal injury protection, the election has to be made within a window of days after the crash, and electing those benefits limits the right to sue the other driver unless the injury is serious enough or costs run past the benefits. Ask before the window closes.

Start the report request

Request the crash report in the first two weeks. The adjuster reads it first, and if it contains an error you want to know in week two, not year two.

How to get your Washington, D.C. crash report

The Metropolitan Police Department calls it a PD-10. You request it from the Public Documents Section, and only the people involved or their lawyer can.

The request goes to the Metropolitan Police Department Public Documents Section at 441 4th Street NW, by email or mail, with the accident report application form and a copy of a government issued photo ID. A first party, meaning someone involved or their attorney, can request it directly and is usually not charged; anyone else goes through the public records process. Mail requests take about six weeks. Follow the current instructions at mpdc.dc.gov.

Read it the day it arrives. Check the direction of travel, the lane assignments, the narrative, the witness list and any citation. A wrong arrow on a diagram gets repeated in every adjuster letter for two years unless somebody corrects it.

Who pays for what after a Washington, D.C. car accident

Almost nothing is paid by the at fault driver up front. Your own coverage carries the bills while the claim is built.

Why fault decides everything in the District

The District still uses contributory negligence for drivers and passengers, so a share of blame is not a discount. It can be the end of the claim.

That one rule is why the photographs, the witnesses and the camera addresses matter more here than almost anywhere. Pedestrians, cyclists and other non motorized users get a friendlier standard under D.C. Code 50-2204.52. Everyone in a car is governed by the older rule. Read the Washington, D.C. contributory negligence page before you discuss the crash with any adjuster.

Special situations in Washington, D.C.

Six scenarios change the steps. Each adds a different deadline or a different defendant.

The other driver left the scene

Call 911 with the plate, make, color and direction of travel. Leaving after a collision is a crime in the District under D.C. Code 50-2201.05c. Open a claim under your own uninsured motorist coverage and start the camera canvass the same week. See Washington, D.C. hit and run claims.

The other driver has no insurance, or not enough

Your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is the answer, and it carries its own notice and consent terms. Never settle with the at fault carrier before checking them, because a release signed without consent can void the claim. See uninsured driver claims in Washington, D.C.

A District vehicle or a District road hazard

If a District government vehicle hit you, or a District maintained signal or roadway defect contributed, written notice to the Mayor is due within six months under D.C. Code 12-309, stating the time, place, cause and circumstances. That deadline expires while you are still in physical therapy.

A Metrobus or Metrorail vehicle

Metro is run by WMATA, an interstate compact agency rather than the District government, so its own claim process governs instead of the six month notice. Identify who owned the bus on day one. See Washington, D.C. bus accident claims.

A rideshare, truck or commercial vehicle

Photograph the company name, the door numbers, the DOT number and any trailer number. A commercial policy and a corporate risk department are now involved, so the preservation letter goes to the company, not the driver. See Washington, D.C. truck accident claims.

You were walking or riding a bike

The same scene steps apply, and the comparative rule in D.C. Code 50-2204.52 governs instead of the driver rule. Get the plate first. See Washington, D.C. pedestrian accident claims.

Deadlines you cannot miss in Washington, D.C.

Several clocks start the day of the crash, and the shortest is measured in days.

Our D.C. Code 12-301 deadline guide covers tolling, minors and the exceptions in detail.

Mistakes that sink Washington, D.C. car accident claims

These five show up again and again, and all of them are avoidable in the first month.

• Giving the other insurer a recorded statement. It exists to lock in an admission about fault or injury.
• A gap in treatment. Two months without a visit becomes the argument that you got better and something else hurt you.
• Posting about it. A gym photo or a "feeling great" caption gets printed and shown to a jury.
• Signing a release for a small check. It ends every claim in the file, including ones you have not discovered.
• Waiting. Footage is gone in days, and the first offer rarely improves on its own.