How Long Do You Have to Report a Car Accident in Pennsylvania? 2 Deadlines That Aren’t the Same

Pennsylvania gives you two different clocks after a car accident: Immediately for a police report, and five days for a separate written report to PennDOT.

PennDOT’s 2024 crash statistics count 110,765 reportable accidents statewide.

You may already know about the police report deadline. But PennDOT’s five-day written report has nothing to do with calling 911.

Here’s what you need to know.

Note: This is general information, not legal advice. Crash-reporting rules and deadlines are subject to change, so confirm the current requirements with PennDOT.

The Immediate Notice Rule for Police

Pennsylvania law spells out exactly when you have to loop in the police, and it has nothing to do with who caused the accident.

Under Title 75, Section 3746, you have to notify the nearest police department immediately, by whatever means reaches them fastest.

That duty kicks in whenever a crash injures or kills someone.

It also kicks in when a vehicle can’t drive away on its own and needs a tow.

There’s no dollar amount that triggers this rule.

A fender-bender that leaves both cars driveable doesn’t require a police call at all, no matter what the repair estimate looks like.

A single-vehicle crash counts too.

Hit a guardrail or a deer with no other car around, and the same threshold still applies if the damage meets it.

The duty doesn’t only fall on the driver.

If the driver is hurt too badly to make the call, any other occupant able to do so has to notify police instead.

Call it in, and an officer has to investigate and hand you a signed statement confirming the accident was reported.

That paper trail matters later.

But calling the police doesn’t end the paperwork for everyone.

The Separate 5-Day Report to PennDOT

Pennsylvania splits crash reporting into two separate systems, and the second one runs on paper, not a phone call.

Within five days of the accident, the driver has to mail a written report to PennDOT.

That duty only kicks in if a police officer never investigated the crash.

PennDOT calls the paperwork the AA-600 form, and it still goes out by mail to the Bureau of Operations in Harrisburg.

There's no online option for a driver to file it directly.

If the driver can't physically fill it out, the vehicle's owner has to file it instead, still within five days.

The report itself stays confidential.

PennDOT collects it for accident-prevention statistics, and Pennsylvania courts can't use it as trial evidence, except in a case over a false report.

No exceptions for forgetting.

Does This Apply If You Weren't at Fault?

Pennsylvania's reporting duty doesn't care who caused the crash.

Both statutes cover the driver of the vehicle, not just the driver who caused it.

The other driver's mistake doesn't excuse you from either deadline.

Insurance adjusters sort out fault later, and a courtroom finishes the job when a case goes that far.

That's true either way.

The reporting clock runs the same for everyone in the crash.

This Isn't the Same as Leaving the Scene

Pennsylvania treats fleeing a crash as a different crime from missing either reporting deadline, and clearing one duty never excuses the other.

Leaving the scene of a crash that hurt someone is a first-degree misdemeanor on its own.

Leave after a crash that caused serious injury, and it becomes a felony carrying a mandatory minimum of 90 days behind bars plus a $1,000 fine.

A fatal crash pushes the mandatory minimum to three years, with a $2,500 penalty attached, and judges can't suspend any of it.

Stopping isn't optional either.

A related duty requires giving your name, address, and registration to the other driver or an officer, and rendering aid to anyone who's hurt.

None of that depends on whether you already reported the crash under either deadline above.

Every state runs a different version of the reporting clock this article covers, and Florida's timeline looks nothing like Pennsylvania's.

What Happens If You Miss Either Deadline

A missed report in Pennsylvania counts as a summary offense, not a felony, but it still costs you.

Neither reporting statute spells out a penalty amount, so a violation falls to Title 75's default fine of $25.

That's the whole ticket for a first miss.

The fine doesn't arrive in the mail on its own.

It usually shows up after a magisterial district judge cites you, often once an insurer or a later police contact flags a report that was never filed.

Teen drivers face something sharper.

PennDOT can hand a junior license holder a 90-day suspension, or one that lasts until they turn 18.

That applies when PennDOT finds them responsible for a crash that met the reporting threshold above.

There's also a paperwork problem that outlasts the fine.

No police report and no AA-600 on file means no clean record of what happened.

That's exactly what an insurance adjuster asks for first.

A reported crash can already push your insurance rates up at your next renewal.

Skipping the paperwork doesn't skip that.

FAQ

Quick answers to what Pennsylvania drivers search about crash-reporting deadlines.

How long do I have to report a car accident in Pennsylvania?

Immediately for the police, by the fastest means you can reach them, if the crash hurt someone or left a vehicle unable to drive away. Separately, you have five days to mail PennDOT a written report if no officer investigated the crash.

Do I have to call the police for a minor fender-bender in Pennsylvania?

Not if both vehicles can still drive away and nobody got hurt. Pennsylvania's immediate-notice law only kicks in for injury, death, or a vehicle that needs a tow.

What is PennDOT's AA-600 form?

It's the written accident report drivers mail in when police never investigate the crash. It's due within five days and goes to PennDOT's Bureau of Operations in Harrisburg.

What happens if you don't report a car accident in Pennsylvania?

You're looking at a $25 summary-offense fine for missing either deadline. Teen drivers risk a longer license suspension if PennDOT finds them at fault for the crash.

Is leaving the scene of a crash the same as missing PennDOT's report deadline?

No. Leaving the scene of a crash that hurt or killed someone is a separate, far more serious crime, with mandatory prison time built into the sentence.