How to get a car accident report in California
California provides state-police crash reports through CHP Online Crash Report System. Crashes handled by local police or county sheriffs are requested from the responding agency (listed below).
Official source
CHP Online Crash Report System
Official California crash-report source — $22 processing fee per report (credit/debit card). State-police crashes; locals request from the responding agency.
Open the official portal→Source: California — CHP Online Crash Report System. Checked 2026-07-24. Details can change — always confirm with the official source.
Step by step
- Confirm CHP is the investigating agency. The CHP Online Crash Report System only holds crashes CHP investigated — typically on state highways, freeways, and unincorporated county roads. If a city police department or county sheriff worked your crash, request it from that agency instead (see local routing).
- Wait for the report to be filed. CHP collision reports are generally available about 7–10 business days after the crash. Requesting before then will return no result.
- Register and log in at crashes.chp.ca.gov. Go to https://crashes.chp.ca.gov and create a free account (email + password) or log in if you already have one.
- Search for your report and verify eligibility. Search using the collision date, location, and/or CHP report number, then verify your identity and select your role as a Party of Interest (driver, injured party, owner, representative, etc.) — CVC § 20012 limits release to interested parties.
- Pay the $22 fee and download the PDF. Pay the $22 processing fee by credit or debit card and download the report PDF instantly. Alternative offline route: complete the CHP 190 form and mail it (or take it in person) to the CHP Area office that investigated the crash, with a copy of your photo ID and the applicable fee.
State police / highway patrol crashes
The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is California's state police for traffic; there is no separate 'state police' agency for crash reports. Get a CHP-investigated report either (1) online at https://crashes.chp.ca.gov — register, search by date/location/report number, verify Party-of-Interest eligibility, pay the $22 fee, and download the PDF; or (2) by submitting the CHP 190 'Application for Release of Information' form (free at chp.ca.gov) by mail or in person to the specific CHP Area office that investigated the crash, with a copy of your photo ID and the fee (about $10 and up depending on report length). Reports are typically ready ~7–10 business days after the collision.
Crashes handled by local police or sheriffs
There is NO single statewide portal for locally handled crashes — the CHP portal only serves CHP-investigated collisions. For a crash worked by a California city police department or county sheriff, request the report directly from that specific agency. Many agencies deliver online through third-party vendors — most commonly LexisNexis BuyCrash / crashdocs.org (roughly $10–$15 per PDF) — while others use their own online records portal (e.g. NextRequest) or take requests by mail or in person. Release is still restricted to interested parties under CVC § 20012, so you must show you are a driver, injured party, owner, insurer, or attorney/representative. Identify the investigating agency (named on the exchange-of-information slip or by the crash location) and follow that agency's request page.
California agencies (128)
Pick the agency that responded to your crash for its exact request process:
- Anaheim Police Department
- Arcadia Police Department
- Atascadero Police Department
- Bakersfield Pd
- Baldwin Park Police Department
- Beaumont Police Department
- Berkeley Police Department -
- Beverly Hills Police Department
- Buena Park Police Department
- Burbank Police Department
- Burlingame Police Department
- California State University Fullerton Police De
- Campbell Police Department
- Canyon Lake Police Department
- Carlsbad Police Department
- Ceres Police Department
- Chico Police Department
- Chino Police Department
- City of San Jacinto
- Concord Police Department
- Corona Police Department
- Culver City Police Department
- Danville Police Department
- Dos Palos Police Department
- Downey Police Department
- El Segundo Police Department
- Escondido Police Department
- Fairfield Police Department
- Fontana Police Department
- Fountain Valley Police Department
- Fresno Police Department
- Fullerton Police Department
- Gardena Police Department
- Gilroy Police Department
- Glendale Police Department
- Glendora Police Department
- Hanford Police Department
- Hawthorne Police Department
- Hemet Police Department
- Indio Police Department
- Inglewood Police Department Ca
- Jurupa Valley Police Department
- Lake Elsinore Police Department
- Lodi Police Department
- Lompoc Police Department
- Los Alamitos Police Department
- Los Angeles Police Department - Lapd
- Los Gatos Monte Sereno Police Department
- Manhattan Beach Police Department
- Manteca Police Department
- Menifee Police Department
- Merced Police Department
- Milpitas Police Department
- Montebello Police Department
- Moreno Valley Police Department
- Morgan Hill Police Department
- Murrieta Police Department
- National City Police Department
- Oakland Police Department
- Ontario Police Department
- Orange Police Department
- Orland Police Department
- Pacifica Police Department
- Palo Alto Police Department
- Pasadena Police Department
- Paso Robles Police Department
- Perris Police Department
- Pittsburg Police Department
- Placentia Police Department
- Placer County Sheriffs Office
- Pleasanton Police Department
- Pomona Police Department
- Redlands Police Department
- Redwood City Police Department
- Rialto Police Department
- Riverside County Sheriff - Coachella
- Riverside County Sheriff - Indian Wells
- Riverside County Sheriff - La Quinta
- Riverside County Sheriff - Palm Desert Station
- Riverside County Sheriff - Rancho Mirage
- Riverside Police Department
- Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety
- Roseville Police Department
- Sacramento Police Department
- Salinas Police Department
- San Diego Police Department
- San Gabriel Police Department
- San Jose Police Department
- San Leandro Police Department
- San Mateo County Sheriff, Half Moon Bay
- San Mateo County Sheriff, Millbrae
- San Mateo County Sheriff, San Carlos
- San Mateo County Sheriff, Unincorporated
- San Ramon Police Department
- Sanger Police Department
- Santa Ana Police Department
- Santa Barbara County Sheriff
- Santa Barbara Police Department
- Santa Clara County Sheriffs Office
- Santa Clara Police Department
- Santa Maria Police Department
- Santa Monica Police Dept.
- Seal Beach Police Department
- Sierra Madre Police Department
- Signal Hill Police Department
- Simi Valley Police Department
- Soledad Police Department
- South Lake Tahoe Police Department
- South Pasadena Police Department
- Stockton Police Department
- Suisun City Police Department
- Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety
- Temecula Police Department
- Torrance Police Department
- Tulare Police Department
- Tuolumne County Sheriff'S Office
- Turlock Police Department
- Tustin Police Department
- Union City Police Department
- Upland Police Department
- Vallejo Police Department
- Ventura Police Dept
- Visalia Police Department
- Walnut Creek Police Department
- West Covina Police Department
- Westminster Police Department
- Wildomar Police Department
- Woodland Police Department
After you get the report
Use the report to open and support your insurance claim — give the report or its number to your insurer and the other parties' insurers. Separately, California requires drivers to file DMV form SR-1 within 10 days of any crash involving injury, death, or property damage over $1,000. Read the report carefully and check for errors — misspelled names, wrong vehicle/plate/insurance info, incorrect location or diagram, or a mistaken fault/violation code — and ask the investigating CHP officer or agency to correct or amend factual errors, since insurers and any injury claim will rely on it.