What is a police report number?
It is the reference the investigating agency gives to one event. It is the agency's number, not a national one, so two departments can use the same digits for different crashes. That is why almost every search also asks for a date or a name.
The number goes by several names, and knowing which one your agency uses makes its form much easier to read.
| Agency or system | Name it uses |
|---|---|
| Arizona Department of Public Safety | Incident number |
| Nevada Highway Patrol | Crash number |
| Ohio Department of Public Safety, state search | Crash number, and document number |
| Ohio State Highway Patrol | Crash report number |
| TxDOT, Texas | Agency Case ID for the agency's number, and Crash ID for the state's own |
| Tennessee | Case or tracking number, and agency tracking number |
| San Antonio Police | SAPD case number |
Texas shows why the names matter. A Texas crash has two numbers. The agency that investigated gives it a case ID, and TxDOT gives it a Crash ID when the report reaches the state. The search form asks for the first one. The results show both.
Where is the number printed?
On the paper the officer gave you at the scene. What that paper is called depends on the agency.
- Ohio state troopers hand out a card, form OHP 0410. It has printed spaces for the crash report number, the investigating officer and the patrol post's phone number.
- Delaware State Police refer to a collision information exchange form, and ask you to send a copy of it with a request for the report.
- In Tennessee, the state asks buyers for the agency tracking number along with the date, the county and the drivers' names.
If you have a slip but cannot tell which line is the report number, look for the agency's name first. Then match the pattern in the next section.
What does the number look like?
There is no common format. These are the patterns agencies describe on their own pages.
| Agency | Format | Rule to follow when typing it |
|---|---|---|
| Arizona Department of Public Safety | A capital letter I followed by 8 digits | No hyphens. The number must be complete |
| Nevada Highway Patrol | The letters NHP followed by the number | Include the letters |
| Ohio state search | A crash number or a document number | Up to 10 document numbers can be entered at once, separated by semicolons |
| Texas agencies | Varies by agency | TxDOT says to contact the investigating agency if you need the value |
A number typed in the wrong form can make a search fail. Arizona is the clearest case. An incident number entered with a hyphen, or without its leading letter, does not meet the department's rule for online requests.
How do you find a report without the number?
Most official searches were built for people who do not have it. These are the details each one accepts instead.
| System | What it accepts instead |
|---|---|
| Texas, TxDOT | The first and last name of anyone in the crash, or a driver license or ID card number. County, city, date and license plate narrow the list |
| New York DMV | The plate number of one of the vehicles, a driver license number, or the name and date of birth of a person involved |
| Ohio state search | Under Advanced Options, a crash start date, a crash end date and the county, with the agency as a filter |
| Washington State Patrol | The name of an involved party and the date of the collision |
| Tennessee, online | A VIN or a license plate in place of the case number, with the last name, the date, the reporting agency and the driver's license number |
| San Antonio Police | Two or more of: the date, the location, the names of the people involved, and a short description. A date of birth for a common name |
Two searches go the other way. The Nevada Highway Patrol lists the crash number as required, with the last name of an involved party and the date. Arizona's Department of Public Safety requires the complete incident number for an online request. For those agencies, get the number before you start.
Who can tell you the number?
The agency that investigated, through its records unit. Have the date, the place and the drivers' names ready when you call.
| Agency | Who to ask |
|---|---|
| Arizona DPS | Department Records Unit, (602) 223-2230 or (602) 223-2236, once 14 days have passed |
| Ohio State Highway Patrol | The patrol post that investigated the crash |
| Tennessee Highway Patrol | The district office for the county of the crash |
| Dallas Police | The Records Section, which offers report verification |
| Fort Worth Police | The Police Records unit, 817-392-4160 |
| Phoenix Police | Public Records and Services Bureau, 602-534-1127 |
| Tucson Police | Records Section, 520-791-4462 |
If you do not know which agency came, start there. The guide to getting a police report online explains how to work it out, and the state finder shows where each state starts.
Numbers that are not the report number
Three other numbers turn up along the way, and each gets mistaken for the report number.
- A purchase reference. TxDOT emails a receipt with a Local Reference ID. You need it to download the report again within 10 days. It identifies your purchase, not the report.
- A state number. TxDOT's Crash ID is the state's label for the crash. Bulk requesters receive Crash IDs so that they can buy reports one at a time.
- An agency code. In Ohio's state search each agency has a short code after its name. Columbus police appear with the code COP00. That code identifies the department, not your crash.
What should you keep?
- The paper from the scenePhotograph it. It carries the agency's name and number together.
- The report number, typed outWrite it exactly as the agency does, including any letters at the front.
- The receipt from any purchaseIt holds the reference you need to download the report again.
- The report itselfSave the file as soon as it opens. Download windows are short. Texas allows 10 days, New York 7 calendar days and Ohio's Highway Patrol up to 72 hours.
The bottom line
- Look for the number on the card or slip the officer gave you.
- Most searches work without it, using a name, a plate or a date and a county.
- The Nevada Highway Patrol and Arizona's online request both require it.
- The agency's records unit can tell you a lost number.
- A purchase receipt carries its own reference, which is not the report number.
Questions about police report numbers
How do I find my police report number?
Look at whatever the officer handed you at the scene: a card, a slip or an exchange of information form. If you have nothing, call the records unit of the agency that investigated and give the date, the place and the drivers' names. Ohio's Highway Patrol says its crash report number comes from the patrol post that investigated.
Can I look up a police report without the report number?
In many of the states we have read, yes. Texas searches on a first and last name. New York accepts a plate number, a driver license number, or a name and date of birth. Ohio accepts a start date, an end date and a county. Tennessee accepts a VIN or a license plate in place of the case number.
What does a police report number look like?
Every agency has its own pattern. An Arizona Department of Public Safety incident number is a capital I followed by 8 digits, with no hyphens. A Nevada Highway Patrol crash number is the letters NHP followed by digits. TxDOT says the format of an agency's case number varies from one agency to the next.
Is the case number the same as the report number?
Usually it is the same idea under a different name. Texas calls the agency's number the Agency Case ID and gives each crash its own state Crash ID as well. Tennessee calls it the agency tracking number. Ohio's search uses a crash number and a document number.
Which searches will not work without the number?
The Nevada Highway Patrol's. Its page lists the crash number, the last name of an involved party and the date of the crash as required, and says the crash number must include NHP followed by the number. Arizona's Department of Public Safety also requires the complete incident number for an online request.
Who can tell me the number if I lost it?
The records unit of the agency that investigated. Dallas police offer report verification, which is a confirmation of a report number. Arizona's Department Records Unit answers at (602) 223-2230. For a Tennessee Highway Patrol report, call the district office for the county of the crash.
Is the number on my receipt the report number?
No. When you buy a report from TxDOT, the emailed receipt carries a Local Reference ID. That is the number for your purchase, and it is what you enter to download the report again. It is not the report's own number.