Texas Crash Reports
Any motor vehicle accident is traumatic. Your Texas crash report will reveal what happened, where it happened, and the probable cause of the accident in the eyes of the attending officer. This information is vital because you may need a copy of a TXDOT crash report to advance your insurance claim or fight the case in court.
Knowing how to read a crash report and obtaining Texas traffic accident reports doesn’t have to be complex. At MyAccident.org, we make it simple for you to perform a Texas crash report search and receive your report as soon as possible.
Everyone involved in an accident has the right to read the crash reports that pertain to them. Rather than negotiating a convoluted process of speaking to various departments and filling in tedious forms, our service enables you to get your Texas accident report for free.
By using the information contained within, you can find out how your accident was documented and figure out the next steps in getting the justice you deserve.
The CR3 ‘Peace Officer Report’
A Texas crash report is officially titled as the ‘CR3 Peace Officer Report’. It is used by law enforcement to record the details relating to an accident involving any type of vehicle. The details in the Peace Officer report are recorded by the officer who attended the scene of the accident. If a police officer did not attend your accident you have the option to file your own report and the state provide you with a form titled ‘CR2 Driver’s Crash Report’.
The report can be pretty complicated due to the fact that there are often 1000’s of circumstances and facts that are recorded about the accident details, drivers, occupants, and vehicles involved. If you are looking for a very detailed explanation of the information, codes, and terminology used in the CR3, please visit the Crash Records Forms for Law Enforcement page as well as explore the documents linked below.
| No. | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| CR-3 | 2018 Fillable PDF Version (Crashes that occurred on or after 1/1/2018) (Rev. 1/1/2018) | |
| CR-3CS | 2018 Code Sheets (For filling out the 2018 CR-3) | |
| CR-100 | 2018 Instructions to Police for Reporting Crashes (Version 17.0) (Rev. 06/28/2018) |
Looking for a specific Texas county or city?
• Houston
• San Antonio
• Dallas
• Austin
• Fort Worth
• Amarillo
• Midland
• Corpus Christi
• El Paso
• Plano
• Irving
• Lubbock
• Brownsville
• Harris County
• Dallas County
• Tarrant
County
• Bexar County
• Travis County
• Laredo
TxDOT and CRIS Data System
The police officer files the CR3 report using a TxDOT system called: “CRIS” which stands for “Crash Reporting Information System”. Texas is one of the most advanced states in how it handles its accident reports and the technology it uses to make reports available for its citizens online. One of the key barriers other states face in recording facts about The CRIS system is the hundreds (often thousands) of Police agencies operating the state and the different technology they use. To give you some idea there are over a thousand police agencies operating in Texas all capable of attending an accident and recording information in the CR3 form.
Luckily, Texas took steps over 5 years ago to centralize its technology, and now nearly all police agencies operating in Texas use the CRIS system. What does this mean to you? Well, it means you can easily find your crash report online and it saves you waiting for the mail or a trip to the Police agency office.
3 Ways to Get A Copy Of Your TXDOT Crash Report Online
1. Use MyAccident.org
MyAccident.org provides a free version of your Texas accident report. This report holds all the details from the CR3 form with the exception of personal information like the names and contact information for those involved. You can also download a copy of your official report.
2. TXDOT CRIS SYSTEM - TxDOT
The Texas Department of Transportation is one of the most advanced DOTs in the US. Through several technology initiatives it has created a comprehensive database that can be accessed at the link provided. If you can make it through the slightly complicated User Experience. This is by far the best place to obtain a copy of your crash report.
3. Data Sites like LexisNexis or CrashDocs
These websites can be a good reliable source of data. However they can be difficult to use and do not have all the Police Agencies in Texas. (sometimes less than 50%)
Information you need to find your accident report in Texas:
Legal Requirements To Request Your Texas Accident Report
In order to purchase a Non-Redacted copy of Texas peace officer's Crash Report ID 17313269, you must certify that you meet one of the requirements of Texas Transportation Code 550.065. Providing false information is a violation of Texas Penal Code §37.10 and could result in criminal penalties.
You must comply with at least one of the following:
- Any person involved in the accident
- The authorized representative of any person involved in the accident
- A driver involved in the accident
- An employer, parent or legal guardian of a driver involved in the accident
- The owner of a vehicle or property damaged in the accident
- A person who has established financial responsibility for a vehicle involved in the accident in a manner described by TTC section 601.051including a policyholder of a motor vehicle liability insurance policy covering the vehicle
- An insurance company that issued an insurance policy covering a vehicle involved in the accident
- An insurance company that issued an insurance policy covering any person involved in the accident
- A person under contract to provide claims or underwriting information to a person who has established financial responsibility for vehicle involved in the accident in a manner described by TTC section 601.051, including a policyholder of a motor vehicle liability insurance policy covering the vehicle
- A person under contract to provide claims or underwriting information to an insurance company that issued an insurance policy covering a vehicle involved in the accident
- A person under contract to provide claims or underwriting information to an insurance company that issued an insurance policy covering any person involved in the accident
- A radio or television station that holds a licence issued by the federal communications commission
- A newspaper that is: I.a free newspaper of general circulation or qualified section 2051.044, government code, to publish legal notices; II.published at least once a week; and III.available and of interest to the general public in connection with the dissemination of news
- Any person who may sue because of death resulting from the accident other (provide justifications)
Texas Accident Reports - FAQ
How to Read a Texas Crash Report?It’s the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) that is responsible for collecting, storing, and archiving crash reports from across the state. Knowing how to read a Texas crash report is vital to understanding where you stand. Each crash report comes with two pages divided into separate sections. On the first page, your report will contain information about the drivers involved, their vehicles, and the location of the accident. Under the Identification and Location section, you will have information about the precise location, date, time, and speed limit on the listed road, the damage that occurred, and whether the officer believes more than $1,000 in damages was caused. The next section is the Vehicle, Driver & Persons section. This section will contain two sections (one for each vehicle). It will include information on the year, make, model, color, and body style, alongside a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN). There will also be information about the person’s driving licensing, towing information, proof of financial responsibility, and personal information about the driver. The second page contains the sections Disposition of Injured/Killed, Charges, and an additional section designed for commercial motor vehicles. The final parts of page two are the Factors and Conditions section, illustrating any contributing factors, and the Narrative and Diagram section, which is the narrative according to the attending officer. |
Texas Car Accident StatisticsRoad traffic accidents are a fact of life. According to data from the TxDOT, one person was killed every hour and 57 minutes on the roads of the Lone Star State in 2021. Approximately 239,539 people were injured in motor vehicle accidents in 2021. Sadly, fatality rates rose by 4.17% from 2020, with 1.56 deaths per hundred million miles traveled on the roads of Texas. It illustrates the extra care drivers need to take to safeguard themselves and their families. If you are involved in an accident, you have the right to obtain a TxDOT accident report. |
Strictness of Texas Traffic LawsTexas is one of the freest states when it comes to its traffic laws. Texas is just the 49th strictest when it comes to speed limits, enabling Texans to drive faster than their fellow Americans in neighboring states. However, while Texas isn’t the most stringent state when it comes to traffic laws, the state is far stricter on certain aspects of safety, such as cell phone use, child passenger safety, and seatbelt use. For example, it is the 7th strictest state in the country when it comes to the harshness of its seatbelt laws. |
Reasons you can’t find Your Crash Report
1. Not filed yet
It may be that the report has not yet been filed by the police officer, or that you are missing some information relating to the accident, like the exact date or location, the specific police department that attended your accident (there are over 1000+ police agencies in the state, after all) and a whole load of other reasons. You can use MyAccident’s Alert tool to be notified by SMS or email when your report is filed.
2. Not sure of some details
It may be that you aren’t sure about some of the exact details relating to the accident. You may have lost your ticket and do not have the Case ID. You may not be sure of the specific Police Agency that attended the accident. The MyAccident.org Find My Report tool offers an easy way to help locate your report for you.
