After a Crash in Texas — Official Resources
This is general information, not legal advice.
The official Texas resources for after a crash. Start with the first-steps checklist (including saving your dashcam clip before it loops), then work down this list.
Reporting the crash — Texas is different
Texas drivers no longer file their own crash report with the state. Per TxDOT, the Driver's Crash Report (form CR-2, the "blue form") has not been retained by the state since Sept. 1, 2017. What matters instead is getting police to the scene: state law requires an officer's report for a crash involving injury, death, or apparent damage of $1,000 or more.
If no officer came and you were handed a CR-2 or a local agency form, fill it out and keep it — your insurer will want it, but do not mail it to TxDOT; it will be destroyed.
Get the police report
Buy the officer's crash report (CR-3) through the TxDOT Crash Report Purchase System — $6 regular $8 certified. Officers have up to 10 days to file, plus processing, so allow roughly two weeks before it appears.
Hit-and-run
Call the police immediately — with a fled driver, the officer's report is the foundation of any claim, and in Texas that report is the only crash record the state keeps. Your dashcam clip is the case: save it now and note the time and location. Your own policy's uninsured-motorist coverage may apply even though the driver fled — ask your insurer, and the Department of Insurance help line below can step in if you hit a wall.
Find a lawyer
The State Bar of Texas Lawyer Referral & Information Service — 800-252-9690. An initial consultation of up to 30 minutes costs no more than $20.
Bexar, Dallas, Harris, Jefferson, Tarrant, and Travis counties run their own Bar-certified services — see the certified referral programs list.
Free legal help
TexasLawHelp.org is the statewide guide to free and reduced-fee legal aid, organized by county. The State Bar's referral service is not legal aid — this is where to go if cost is the problem.
Insurance problems
The Texas Department of Insurance helps with auto insurance complaints against companies, agents, and adjusters. Help Line: 800-252-3439, weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central.
Driving without insurance yourself? You still have rights and steps worth taking — make sure the crash is documented per the rules above, and lean on the free legal help listed here; it exists for exactly this kind of bind.
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Dashwatcher is a dashcam company, not a law firm, and nothing here is legal advice or a substitute for a licensed attorney. Reporting rules, deadlines, and programs differ by state and change over time; verify everything with the official source before you rely on it. Links go to government agencies, bar associations, and nonprofits. Dashwatcher receives no payment from any organization listed.
From the team at Dashwatcher.
Last verified: August 3, 2026