After a crash in Dallas, the officer’s written report is usually the first document an insurer asks for. This post shows you how to get your Dallas crash report, when it should be ready, what it costs, and what to check once you have it.
What the crash report is
In Texas, the officer’s report is the Texas Peace Officer’s Crash Report, form CR-3. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is the custodian of crash records for the state (TxDOT).
Not every crash gets one. An officer who investigates a crash must write a report if someone was hurt or killed, or if any one person’s property shows apparent damage of $1,000 or more (Tex. Transp. Code 550.062(a)). A low-damage fender bender with no officer at the scene may have no CR-3 at all.
The officer must file the report electronically with TxDOT no later than the 10th day after the crash (550.062(b)). That date matters for planning, as the worked example below shows.
Who can get the full report
The full report is not public. Texas law releases it on written request and payment of the fee to people with a direct interest in the crash (Tex. Transp. Code 550.065(c)). That list includes:
- anyone involved in the crash, and their authorized representative
- a driver involved in the crash, and that driver’s employer, parent, or legal guardian
- the owner of a vehicle or property damaged in the crash
- an insurer that covers a vehicle or a person involved
- a person who may sue because of a death caused by the crash
Anyone else can ask for a redacted copy. That version removes names, driver’s license numbers, full dates of birth, street addresses, phone numbers, plate numbers, and insurer details (550.065(c-1) and (f)). If someone sent you a copy with blank names and plates, you were given the redacted version, and you can buy the full one yourself.
What it costs
The fee set by statute is $6 for a copy. A certified copy costs $2 more, so $8 in total (Tex. Transp. Code 550.065(d)). TxDOT lists the same $6 and $8 prices and says its online system adds a small surcharge, with possible card processing fees on top (TxDOT).
You usually need the certified copy only for official use, such as a court case. For an insurance claim, the regular copy is normally enough.
How to get your Dallas crash report, step by step
- Find your paperwork from the scene. Look for a card or slip from the officer. Write down the agency name, the officer’s name, and any case, service, or crash ID number on it.
- Work out which agency handled the crash. Texas law tells drivers to report a crash to the city police inside a city, and to the sheriff or the state outside one (Tex. Transp. Code 550.026). Inside Dallas city limits, that is usually the Dallas Police Department. In unincorporated Dallas County, it may be the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office. The agency on your card is the one that wrote the report.
- Count 10 days from the crash. That is the latest date the officer may file with TxDOT (550.062(b)). Searching before then often returns nothing.
- Search the TxDOT Crash Report Online Purchase System. Go to cris.txdot.gov, which both TxDOT and the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office point to. Have the crash date, the location, and the name of a driver ready, plus the ID number from step 1 if you have one.
- Confirm you qualify for the full copy. The system asks how you meet the release criteria. If you do not fit a listed category, TxDOT gives you a redacted copy (TxDOT).
- Pay and check your email. TxDOT sends the report by email after purchase.
- If the search finds nothing, wait a few business days and try again. If it still finds nothing after the 10-day mark, call the agency from step 2 and ask whether a CR-3 was written, and if not, why.
Worked example
Say your crash happened on a Friday, December 4, on LBJ Freeway near Preston Road. Day 10 after the crash is Monday, December 14. Search on or after December 14, not the weekend after the crash. If the report is missing on December 18, call the agency that worked the crash with your service number in hand.
If no officer came to the scene
If no officer investigated, there may be no CR-3 to buy. Texas drivers once filed their own crash report, the CR-2. TxDOT stopped keeping those on September 1, 2017, and no longer holds any copies (TxDOT).
In that case, build your own record:
- the other driver’s name, address, plate number, and insurer, which Texas drivers must exchange after a crash with injury or vehicle damage (Tex. Transp. Code 550.023)
- photos of both vehicles, the plates, and the scene
- names and phone numbers of witnesses
- a short written account, dated, made the same day
Check the report before you rely on it
Insurers read the CR-3 closely. Read yours line by line and mark anything that is wrong or missing:
- Date, time, and location, including the road and the nearest cross street
- Your name, address, and vehicle details
- The other driver’s name, vehicle, and insurer
- The direction each vehicle was traveling
- The diagram and the officer’s written narrative
- Contributing factors listed for each driver
- Whether injuries are recorded, and for whom
- Witness names
TxDOT does not say on its records page how to change a report. If something is wrong, contact the agency that wrote it, ask how it handles corrections or supplements, and keep a copy of your request.
Keep the 2-year clock in view
A crash report is evidence, not a claim. In Texas, a lawsuit for personal injury generally has to be filed within 2 years after the day the claim accrues (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code 16.003).
For the order of events after the report, read what the steps are in a personal injury lawsuit.
When to talk to a lawyer
If the report blames you and you disagree, or an insurer is relying on a report with errors, a lawyer can review it with your photos and records. You can read how our car accident practice handles a claim, from the crash report to the insurer’s decision.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Laws change and every case is different. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice on your situation, book a case review.