| Where to request | TxDOT Crash Report Online Purchase System, linked from TxDOT's page Crash reports and records |
|---|---|
| Fee | $6 for a regular copy, $8 for a certified copy. Card payments add a Texas.gov fee. An electronic check adds none |
| How long until it is available | Up to 14 days from the crash date |
| What you need | The first and last name of anyone in the crash, or the driver license or ID card number of a driver |
| Who may request | Anyone can buy a redacted copy. The full copy goes to the people listed in Transportation Code 550.065 |
| In person | No counter is listed. TxDOT's crash records page names the online system only |
| Help desk | (844) CRIS-HLP, 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM, 7 days a week, or support@crishlp.com |
| How payment is taken | Credit or debit card, or electronic check (ACH), both processed by Texas.gov |
| How the report arrives | A download screen after payment and a link by email. The download stays open for 10 days |
| How long reports are kept | 10 years plus the current year |
| If it is not found | Search again after 14 days, then ask the agency that investigated. TxDOT issues a Certified Letter of No Crash Record at no charge |
What TxDOT holds, and what it does not
The Texas Department of Transportation is the custodian of crash records for the whole state. An officer who investigates a crash with an injury, a death, or damage to one person's property of $1,000 or more must send a written report to TxDOT no later than the tenth day after the crash. That duty sits in Transportation Code 550.062. The report is the Texas Peace Officer's Crash Report, Form CR-3, and it makes no difference whether a city officer, a sheriff's deputy or a state trooper wrote it. The copy TxDOT sells is the same record the officer filed.
TxDOT keeps crash reports for 10 years plus the current year. It no longer keeps the driver's own report, Form CR-2. It stopped retaining that form on September 1, 2017 and has had none in its files since January 1, 2019.
You cannot read a report on the site before you pay. TxDOT's page says crash reports are not available for online viewing by the general public because of their confidential nature. You search, you see a short list of matches, and you buy the one that is yours.
What to have ready before you search
The search starts from a person, not from a report number. TxDOT's purchase guide, version 29.0 of June 23, 2025, gives two ways in and a set of optional fields that narrow the list.
| You have | How the search uses it | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| A name | First and last name are both required. It can be anyone in the crash: a driver, a passenger, a pedestrian, a cyclist or the owner of damaged property | A common name can match several crashes. Add the county, the city or the crash date |
| A driver license or ID card number | Finds crashes where that person was a driver | The number is not collected for passengers, so it cannot find them |
| A license plate | An advanced field, added to a name search | The plate of any vehicle in the crash works |
| The agency's case number | An advanced field named Agency Case ID | The format changes from one agency to the next. If you need it, the agency that investigated has it |
| The officer's name | Advanced fields for the investigator's first and last name | Helps when the slip the officer gave you has a name but no number |
| A driver's date of birth | An advanced field | Typed as MM/DD/YYYY |
| The road | Pick the roadway system and highway number, or type the street name | Separates two crashes that share a name and a date |
How the search works, screen by screen
- Open the purchase systemGo to TxDOT's Crash Report Online Purchase System and choose Search for Your Crash Report. It runs 24 hours a day, every day of the year. TxDOT supports the two current versions of Chrome, Firefox and Edge.
- Accept the disclaimerA screen titled Texas Crash Report Search and Purchase Disclaimer comes first. You have to accept it to go on.
- Choose how to searchPick Name, or pick Driver License/Identification Card Number. Then press Continue.
- Narrow the listCounty, city and crash date sit on the first screen. The link Show Advanced Fields opens the rest: plate, investigating agency, investigator, agency case ID, date of birth and road.
- Press Find my Crash ReportStart Over clears the form if you want to try a different spelling or a different person from the same crash.
The investigating agency field has its own link, Select from full List, which shows every agency name the system knows. Use it when you are not sure how the department is spelled in the state's records.
Reading the results list
When more than one crash matches, the system shows a grid with the crash date, the crash time, the county and the city. Hover over the Quick View icon on a row and it adds the Crash ID, the agency, the agency's case ID, the injury severity and the date the record was last updated. Those extra lines are how you tell two crashes on the same day apart before you pay for one.
When only one crash matches, the system skips the grid and opens a screen named Crash Report Found. Either way, a crash report link takes you to the choice of copy.
Which copy to buy
You make two choices for each report: the report type and the redaction style. They are separate, so a certified copy can be redacted and a regular copy can be full.
| Type | Price | What you receive | TxDOT says it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular (uncertified) | $6 | The report stamped Copy from Custodial File | Personal records or unofficial business |
| Certified | $8 | The same stamped report, plus a document signed by the Custodian of Motor Vehicle Crash Records and bearing the TxDOT seal | Legal proceedings, employment verification and similar needs |
| Style | Who can buy it | What is hidden | Extra step |
|---|---|---|---|
| Redacted | Anyone | Personal information, including phone numbers, addresses and dates of birth | None when you order. TxDOT reviews the copy before it is released |
| Not redacted | A person directly concerned in the crash, or one with a proper interest in it | Nothing | A certification on screen that states your interest. Only one full report is allowed per order |
If you pick the wrong type or style, the cart has two links to fix it before you pay: Change Report Type and Change Redaction Style.
Who may buy the full report
Transportation Code 550.065 releases a crash report to any person directly concerned in the accident or having a proper interest in it. TxDOT's page lists who that includes:
- Any person involved in the accident, and that person's authorized representative
- A driver involved in the accident, and an employer, parent or legal guardian of that driver
- The owner of a vehicle or property damaged in the accident
- A person who has established financial responsibility for a vehicle involved, including the policyholder of a liability policy covering it
- An insurance company that issued a policy covering any vehicle or any person involved
- A person under contract to provide claims or underwriting to one of those insurers or policyholders
- A licensed radio or television station, and a newspaper that meets the terms set in the statute
- Any person who may sue because of a death resulting from the accident
- An employee or authorized representative of a vehicle storage facility that stored a vehicle involved
- An agency of the United States, of Texas, or of a local government in Texas
The certification form asks for your first and last name. An organization name is optional, though some of the choices need one. There is also a last choice for people who fit none of the lines above. Pick it and a box opens for you to explain your interest. Two things follow from that choice. The report is not released right away, and if TxDOT finds the reason does not qualify, it sends a redacted copy.
Paying, and when the report is released
All payments go through Texas.gov. You type an email address, press Pay Now at Texas.gov, read one more disclaimer, fill in the payment screen and pass a reCAPTCHA check. A receipt comes by email.
| You pay by | Added charge | Full copy is released | Redacted copy is released |
|---|---|---|---|
| Credit or debit card | A Texas.gov processing fee and surcharge, shown in the total before you pay | Immediately | Within 10 business days |
| Electronic check (ACH) | None | After the payment clears. TxDOT says within 10 days | After the payment clears and TxDOT's review |
The 10 business days for a redacted copy apply to orders of up to 99 reports. Orders of 100 reports or more take up to 20 business days. A payment funded from a foreign source cannot be processed.
Getting the file again later
Every purchase produces an emailed receipt with a Local Reference ID. Keep that email. To fetch the report again, open the purchase system, press the green Download Previous Purchase button and enter the ID. The download works for 10 days from the date of purchase, and TxDOT says extra copies inside that window cost nothing.
For a redacted copy there is a second email, with the subject line Purchase Crash Reports are ready for download, once TxDOT has finished its review. The download screen also carries a link to the CR-3 Code Sheet. There can be more than one sheet, depending on the year of the crash.
When the search finds nothing
Start with the calendar. If the crash was in the last two weeks, TxDOT's advice is to try again in a few days. If more than two weeks have passed, ask the agency that investigated whether the report has been sent in. Fort Worth police give the same 14 days on their own page and list their records unit at 817-392-4160 for crashes their officers worked.
The No Search Results screen has a link named See More, with tips for a better search, and a second link named Purchase a certified letter. That letter is a Certified Letter of No Crash Record. It states that no crash report matching your search exists in CRIS, and TxDOT does not charge for it.
Some crashes never produce a CR-3. The reporting duty covers crashes with an injury, a death or $1,000 or more in damage to one person's property. Below that line an officer may not have filed one. Texas no longer keeps reports that drivers file themselves.
Subpoenas, bulk requests and crash data
A subpoena for federal court, a subpoena for state court and an affidavit each cost $8. They go through a separate system named CRIS Request, which TxDOT introduced in August 2024. Since January 1, 2025 TxDOT has not accepted those requests by mail, and Form CR-91 is no longer required for them. When a request is done, an email brings a download link.
TxDOT does not hand over crash reports in bulk. The law requires each report to be purchased, so a bulk request returns Crash ID numbers that match the request, and the requester buys the reports one by one. TxDOT also says it cannot release the results of a search for every accident involving a particular person.
For numbers without names, TxDOT publishes crash data through its CRIS Query Tool.
Reading the report once you have it
This page stops at getting the report into your hands. For what each box and code on a CR-3 means, FairSettlement.org has a full guide: how to read a Texas crash report.
Texas police departments that also release reports
TxDOT is the one place that sells reports from every Texas agency, but it is not always the only door. San Antonio police take crash report requests themselves and list accident reports at $6, while also pointing to the TxDOT system. Fort Worth police have sent people to the state site since December 15, 2024. Austin police sell their crash reports online through LexisNexis Police Reports.
The Texas page sets the agencies side by side. For Houston, see Houston Police crash reports.
Questions about TxDOT crash reports
How much is a TxDOT crash report?
A regular copy is $6 and a certified copy is $8. Paying by card adds a Texas.gov processing fee and surcharge, which the cart shows before you pay. Paying by electronic check adds nothing, but the report is held until the payment clears.
How long does a crash report take to show up in CRIS?
TxDOT says it can take up to 14 days from the crash date. The officer has until the tenth day after the crash to send the report in. If two weeks have passed and the search still finds nothing, ask the agency that investigated whether the report was submitted.
Can I find my Texas crash report without the case number?
Yes. The search needs only the first and last name of someone in the crash, or the driver license or ID card number of a driver. The agency's case number is an optional advanced field.
What is the difference between a redacted and a full crash report?
A redacted report hides personal information, including phone numbers, addresses and dates of birth, and anyone can buy it. The full report is sold only to a person directly concerned in the crash or with a proper interest in it, after an affidavit on screen.
Do I need a certified copy?
TxDOT says certified reports are usually required for legal proceedings and employment verification, and that regular copies are for personal records or unofficial business. Ask whoever wants the report which one they need before you pay.
Can I get a TxDOT crash report by mail or in person?
TxDOT's crash records page names only the online purchase system for single reports. For subpoenas and affidavits it stopped accepting mail on January 1, 2025. Some police departments take requests for their own reports. San Antonio police are one.
How long does TxDOT keep crash reports?
For 10 years plus the current year. TxDOT says data analysis for years outside that period is unavailable.
I paid but lost the download. How do I get the report again?
Use the Local Reference ID on the receipt TxDOT emailed you. Open the purchase system, choose Download Previous Purchase and enter the ID. The download is available for 10 days from the date of purchase.