Can you change a police report yourself?
No. A crash report belongs to the agency that wrote it, and only that agency can change it. The Illinois State Police put it in one line: "Only the officer submitting the report can make corrections to the traffic crash report." Atascadero police in California say the same from the public's side: "Content of reports cannot be changed once they are submitted for approval, however, any additional information or changes requested can be added in a supplemental report."
So amending a report means asking. You show the agency what is wrong and why, and an officer decides whether to add a correction. Some agencies spell out who to ask. The Missouri State Highway Patrol says "any party involved in the crash, or their attorney, can contact the Highway Patrol troop headquarters of the officer investigating the crash to question any part of the report." In Atascadero, a supplemental report can be made "by any officer regardless of who the initial reporting officer was," and you start it by calling dispatch at (805) 461-5051.
The fix never wipes out the original. It is added to it, which matters for what you can expect, as the next section shows.
Supplemental, amended or revised: what is the difference?
States use different words for the same idea: a second document, tied to the first, that records what changed.
| Where | Name of the fix | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| California Highway Patrol | Supplemental Report, form CHP 556 | Used "to add, delete, or change crash information" in a report already sent to the state's crash database |
| New York | Amended Report | A new page whose identifying details match the original exactly, with the changes written in the officer's notes |
| Virginia | Revised or Supplemental Report | Never a new report for the same crash, which would create a duplicate in the state system |
| Illinois State Police | Amended report | Created by retrieving the original report once the state has approved it |
New York's rule shows how firmly the original stays in place. The identifying details on its Amended Report "MUST EXACTLY MATCH the critical identifying information on the original report, previously submitted, regardless if the information originally reported was incorrect." Even a wrong crash date stays at the top: the officer enters the original date there and writes the new date in the notes.
The national crash data guideline, MMUCC, adds that "officers may note in the narrative if the crash report has been amended or contains supplemental documentation." When you buy a copy later, check the narrative for that note.
Which mistakes can be fixed?
Two kinds of mistake end up in crash reports, and they are handled differently.
Facts
Names, dates, plates, insurance companies, vehicle details and the place of the crash are facts, and a document can prove them. Officers copy most of them from documents in the first place. New York's instructions tell officers to print the driver's information "EXACTLY AS IT APPEARS ON THE LICENSE DOCUMENT," the owner's name "exactly as shown on the registration document," and the insurer's 3-digit code from the vehicle's insurance identification card. So the same documents are your best proof when one of those entries is wrong. Our police report example shows where each of these entries sits on a report.
Opinions
The account of how the crash happened, and who caused it, is the officer's judgment. California's manual asks the officer to "give their opinion of what took place" and to include the primary collision factor and "which party was most at fault." That part changes only if new information persuades the officer, and the manual is plain that a supplemental report "may not necessarily include a change in the officer's opinions and conclusions."
| What changed | Example |
|---|---|
| Injury level | A possible, minor or serious injury becomes a fatal injury |
| Sobriety | The coroner reports whether a person who died was under the influence |
| A missing party | A hit and run driver is identified later |
| Cause or place | A change in the primary collision factor or the location of the crash |
| Your information | "Supplemental statements or information submitted by involved parties, passengers, or witnesses" |
The last row is the one that matters to you. In California, what you submit is itself a reason for the officer to write a supplemental report, even if the conclusion stays the same.
How do you ask for a correction?
- Get the whole reportBuy or request a full copy, with every page, the diagram and the narrative. Our guide to getting a police report online shows where.
- List each mistakeWrite the box or line, what it says, and what it should say. Keep facts apart from disagreements about how the crash happened.
- Gather proofYour insurance card, the registration, the driver license, photos of the scene and damage, a repair estimate, or a statement from a witness.
- Contact the agency that wrote itAsk for the investigating officer, the troop or the records unit, and give the report number. Our report number guide helps if you lost it.
- Put it in writingA short letter or email with your name, the date and place of the crash, the report number, the list of mistakes and copies of the proof.
- Ask for the resultAsk whether a supplemental or amended report will be filed, and for a copy once it is.
- Send the corrected copy onGive it to your insurer and anyone else who has the first version.
One check is worth making at the end. Ohio's online crash copies come from data sent to the state, and the site warns that "changes to a report may have been made to clarify the data prior to being entered. If you wish to obtain the official report and the supplemental information you will need to contact the agency that investigated the crash." The official corrected copy comes from the agency, not from a state statistics site.
Are there time limits to amend a police report?
For you, mostly no. None of the official pages we read sets a deadline for a driver or owner to ask for a correction. The deadlines that exist are the police's own, and they decide how fast a report is filed, approved and sent to the state.
| Where | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Illinois State Police | Report submitted for approval no later than four days after the crash. Supervisor review within two days. Rejected reports corrected by the end of the officer's next shift |
| Virginia | Report sent within twenty-four hours of completing the investigation. Revised reports for the previous year are no longer accepted after the close-out in the first quarter of each year |
| Minnesota | Officer's report to the commissioner within ten days. A death reported within two business days of identifying it |
| Missouri | Officer's report of an injury, a death or damage of five hundred dollars or more sent to the Highway Patrol within ten days |
| California | Agencies are encouraged to check with the coroner on a two-week suspense, then supplement the report |
Virginia's close-out is the clearest limit on corrections. Its manual says "new and revised crash reports for the previous year will not be accepted in TREDS after the close-out," which happens "during the first quarter of each year." A correction asked for late may reach the agency's file but not the state's.
When the police amend a report on their own
Some changes come from the agency, not from you, and they follow the injured person. MMUCC defines a fatal injury as one "that results in death within 30 days" of the crash, and says the earlier injury code should then be changed. The Illinois State Police list a "subsequent death within 30 days" as a reason for an amended report. New York's instructions give a longer window: an Amended Report for "an injury crash that results in the death of the individual, 1 year from the date of the crash," or for a hit and run once the driver "is later identified."
Your own report has its own deadline
Some states ask drivers to file their own report too, and that clock is separate. New York requires form MV-104 for a crash with a death, an injury, or damage to any one person's property over $1,000, "within ten days after such accident." Its law also makes "failure to give correctly the information required" a misdemeanor, so a mistake in your own report is worth raising with the agency that holds it. Missouri asks some drivers involved with an uninsured motorist to report to the Director of Revenue within thirty days.
Can you add to a report you filed online?
For reports you made yourself, many departments take additions online. Garden Grove police in California say that if you have already filed a report, "either online or in person with a police officer, you can add additional information such as text, missing or stolen item details, video or picture evidence." Have the report number and the name of the officer who filed it ready.
That works for things like a theft list. A crash report you filed yourself is a different document from an officer's report, and some agencies keep it apart: Aurora police in Colorado say they cannot get copies of an online crash report a driver completed and send people to the Department of Revenue. Ask the agency that took your report how to add to it.
What if the agency will not change the report?
A refusal is not the end of your side of the story. In California your written account is one of the listed reasons for a supplemental report, and "when a Supplemental Report is prepared, a copy shall be provided to all involved parties." Elsewhere, ask the agency to keep your written statement with the report, keep your proof together, and give your insurer both the report and your evidence.
Also check where your copy came from. Arizona's Department of Public Safety sends reports with supplements through its regular records process, not its quick online release, so a correction can take longer to show up in the copy you can buy. If the version you bought predates the correction, ask the agency for the current one.
Before you ask for a correction
- Get a full copy of the report first, and mark each mistake next to the correct fact.
- Send proof for every fact: the insurance card, the registration, the license, photos or a repair estimate.
- Ask the agency that wrote the report, through the officer, the troop or the records unit.
- Expect a supplemental or amended report attached to the original, not a new report.
- Ask for a copy of the correction, and send it to your insurer.
Questions about amending a police report
How do I amend a police report?
Ask the police agency that wrote it. Contact the officer, the troop or the records unit, name the report number, list each mistake with the correct fact and send proof. If the agency agrees, an officer adds a supplemental or amended report to the original.
Can I change a police report myself?
No. Illinois State Police rules say only the officer submitting the report can make corrections, and Atascadero police say the content of reports cannot be changed once submitted for approval. You can ask, and you can give your own statement.
How long do I have to amend a police report?
None of the official pages we read gives the public a deadline to ask. The deadlines are on the police side, such as four days for Illinois State Police to file, and Virginia's state file stops taking revised reports for a past year after its first quarter close-out.
What is a supplemental police report?
A report an officer adds to the original to record changes or additions. California's manual uses it to add, delete or change crash information, and says it is always tied to the original report.
Can a police report be changed after it is filed?
Yes, by the agency. New York requires an Amended Report when changes are needed, Virginia a Revised or Supplemental Report, and Illinois creates an amended report from the original. The original is not erased.
Will the officer change who was at fault?
Not always. The officer's summary and the cause are the officer's opinion, and California's manual says a supplemental report may not change the officer's opinions and conclusions. Facts with proof are easier to change.
Who gets a copy of the corrected report?
California's manual says that when a supplemental report is prepared, a copy shall be provided to all involved parties. Elsewhere, ask the agency for a copy and give it to your insurer.
Can I add something to a report I filed online?
Often yes. Garden Grove police let you add text, missing or stolen item details, video or pictures to an existing report if you have the report number and the officer's name.