11.3 Crashes: Your Legal Duties, Reporting & Hit-and-Run
Key Takeaways
You must stop after any crash; if no one is hurt, the Driver Removal Law requires moving the vehicles out of travel lanes to a safe place.
File a written crash report with the RMV and local police within five days if anyone is killed or injured or damage is $1,000 or more.
Leaving the scene of a crash that causes property damage can bring up to $200 and up to two years in jail; injury, up to $1,000 and two years; death, up to $5,000 and up to 10 years in state prison.
A witness with flares or triangles should place them 200 feet or more in front of and behind the crash.
Massachusetts law prohibits idling a vehicle for more than five minutes.
In 2022 there were 134,472 motor vehicle crashes in Massachusetts. Obeying the rules and driving defensively lowers your odds, but if you are involved in or witness a crash, state law requires specific actions.
Always Stop
When you are involved in a crash, even a small one, you must stop. Leaving the scene is against the law and can be charged as a "hit and run".
Property-Damage-Only Crashes
- Move your vehicle off the road if possible. When no one is injured, the Driver Removal Law requires moving the vehicles out of travel lanes to a safe location.
- Exchange names, addresses, driver's license numbers, vehicle registrations and insurance information with every driver or property owner involved. Show your license and registration if asked.
- If you damaged a parked vehicle or other property, try to find the owner, or notify the local police.
- Within five days, file a crash report with both the RMV and the local police for any crash with $1,000 or more in property damage.
- If you injured a cat, dog or other animal, notify the local police and, if possible, the owner.
Crashes With Injuries
- Check whether anyone is hurt.
- Call the police, and request an ambulance or EMTs if needed.
- Move your vehicle off the road if possible.
- Exchange information with anyone injured and with the other drivers, and show your license and registration if asked.
- Within five days, file a written crash report with the RMV and local police for any crash that caused injury or death, or $1,000 or more in damage.
- Notify your insurance company.
Emergency First Aid
- Do not move an injured person unless absolutely necessary. If a life-threatening danger forces you to, fully support the head and spine.
- Check for breathing. If the person is not breathing and you are certified in CPR, begin immediately.
- Stop bleeding with direct pressure on the wound until help arrives.
- Cover the person with a blanket or coat for warmth and to help prevent shock.
Hit-and-Run: Leaving the Scene
In 2022, 13,829 Massachusetts crashes were hit-and-runs. You must stay at the scene, identify yourself, give aid if possible, and call for help after any crash involving death, injury or property damage. Maximum penalties for leaving the scene without identifying yourself:
| Crash result | Maximum penalty |
|---|---|
| Damage to another vehicle or property | Up to $200, up to 2 years in jail, or both |
| Personal injury (not death) | Up to $1,000 and up to 2 years in jail |
| Injury resulting in death | Up to $5,000 and up to 2½ years in jail or up to 10 years in state prison |
Hitting and injuring or killing a cat or dog without notifying the owner or police can also bring a fine. Any conviction can add probation costs, up to six years of insurance surcharges and a license suspension (the suspension chart is in Section 5.3).
If You Witness a Crash
If police and emergency vehicles are already there: slow down, drive carefully, watch for people and equipment, and do not stop or slow down to sightsee.
If no police or emergency vehicles are there:
- Park off the road and turn on your flashers.
- Check for injuries.
- Call the police, or ask another driver to call.
- Put any flares, triangles or reflectors 200 feet or more in front of and behind the crash.
- Give first aid as described above.
- If possible, move the vehicles to the side of the road.
- Turn off the ignition of every vehicle involved.
Downed power lines: stay away. If wires are on a vehicle, tell the people inside to stay inside until emergency personnel arrive, and do not touch the vehicle.
Reporting a Crash
- Who must report: any driver in a crash that kills or injures someone, or causes $1,000 or more in property damage.
- Deadline: a written Motor Vehicle Crash Operator Report within five days.
- Where to get the form: a police station, an RMV Service Center, the RMV Contact Center or the RMV website.
- Where copies go: the local police in the city or town where the crash happened, your insurance company and the RMV. Keep a copy for yourself.
- Not enough: reporting only to your insurance company.
- Penalty: failing to file can bring a fine and the suspension or revocation of your license.
A copy of a police crash report can be ordered online for $20.
Green Driving: Drive Smart and Save
The manual ends with fuel-saving tips:
| Tip | Detail |
|---|---|
| Drive less | Walk, bike, carpool or take transit. "Chain" errands and drive to the farthest stop first so the engine warms up. |
| Set it at 60 | Fuel use rises about 5 percent for every 5 mph over 60, like paying about 30 cents more per gallon. |
| Go easy on the pedals | Rapid starts and hard stops can raise fuel use by 40 percent while saving only about 4 percent of travel time. |
| Turn it off | Massachusetts law prohibits idling for more than five minutes. |
| Click the cap | Loose or missing gas caps waste about 147 million gallons a year. A tight cap can save about $120 a year. |
| Check tire pressure | Proper pressure is safer, extends tire life, and can improve fuel use by up to 3 percent per tankful. |
You are in a crash that causes $1,200 in property damage and no injuries. When and where must you file a written crash report?
No report is needed without injuries
Within 24 hours, with your insurance company only
Within 30 days, with the RMV only
Within five days, with the RMV and the local police
You stop to help at a crash before police arrive and you have warning triangles. Where should you put them?
50 feet behind the crash, on the side traffic approaches
Directly beside each of the damaged vehicles
200 feet or more in front of and behind the crash
1,000 feet behind the crash only, on the shoulder
A driver hits another person and drives away without stopping or identifying themselves. The person is injured but survives. What is the maximum penalty?
Up to $1,000 and up to two years in jail
A $100 civil fine only
Up to $5,000 and up to 10 years in state prison
Up to $200 and up to 30 days in jail
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