Addison, Michigan: Car Accident Reporting Requirements: Police, Driver, and Motor Vehicle Reports

Short answer

In Michigan, a driver must immediately report a car accident to the nearest or most convenient police station or police officer when it injures or kills a person, or causes apparent total property damage of $1,000 or more. The police—not the driver—complete the state UD-10 Traffic Car accident Report for a reportable car accident and forward it to the Michigan State Police (MSP). Michigan Compiled Laws § 257.622 sets out those roles.

If an officer is needed at the scene, the MSP says to call 911. To file a UD-10, contact the law-enforcement agency for the area where the car accident occurred or a Michigan State Police post; the MSP Traffic Car accident Reporting Unit cannot file it for a driver. Once processed, an eligible report can be purchased through the state’s Traffic Car accident Purchasing System (TCPS).

Immediate checklist

1. Get help and notify police when the car accident meets the Michigan reporting threshold. For an emergency or to have an officer dispatched to the scene, call 911. Otherwise, the statute’s direction is to report immediately to the nearest or most convenient police station or officer when the injury, death, or apparent-damage threshold applies.
2. Exchange or leave the required identifying information in a vehicle-only car accident. If the other vehicle’s owner or operator cannot be located, report it to the nearest or most convenient police officer. MCL § 257.620 addresses this specific situation.
3. Ask which agency is making the report and retain the case/incident number, if provided. The reporting agency is the right contact for a case number and for a request to change a UD-10.
4. Wait for processing before trying to purchase the report. MSP describes a typical processing window of 3–30 days, depending on the reporting agency; it does not state a mandatory agency-submission deadline.
5. Use the official TCPS or, if the required search information is unavailable, the MSP records-request route. Do not send duplicate records requests by more than one method.

Who reports what in Michigan?

The driver’s police-notice duty

Michigan’s general car accident-reporting law applies when a driver is involved in a car accident that injures or kills someone or causes apparent total property damage of $1,000 or more. The driver must immediately report it to the nearest or most convenient police station or police officer. This is a duty to notify law enforcement; it is not an instruction to complete the UD-10 yourself. MCL § 257.622

For a car accident with another vehicle on public or private property, the driver must stop and locate and notify the other vehicle’s operator or owner with the specified identifying information. If the owner cannot be located, the driver must report the car accident to the nearest or most convenient police officer. That is a separate, narrower rule for vehicle-to-vehicle car accidents. MCL § 257.620

A similar rule applies when only a fixture legally on or next to a highway is damaged: the driver must take reasonable steps to locate and notify the owner or person in charge; if that person cannot be found, report it to the nearest or most convenient police officer. MCL § 257.621

The officer’s UD-10 report

The UD-10 is Michigan’s traffic car accident report. The officer receiving a report, or the officer’s commanding officer, forwards it to the MSP on the form prescribed by the MSP; the law says the investigating officer completes the form in full. The MSP’s Traffic Car accident Reporting Unit says all law-enforcement agencies complete the report for reportable car accidents and forward it to MSP for analysis and statewide car accident data. Its UD-10 instructional guides are expressly resources for law-enforcement partners completing the form.

In practical terms, a driver’s immediate report to police and an officer’s UD-10 are related but different actions. Contacting police does not guarantee that a late report will be created: MSP says car accidents not reported immediately are subject to the reporting agency’s discretion as to whether it will file a report.

Separate driver, motor-vehicle agency, insurer, and claim reports

The official Michigan materials cited on this page direct drivers to law enforcement and assign UD-10 completion to investigating officers. They do not identify a separate ordinary-car accident self-report form for a driver to submit to the Secretary of State or another motor-vehicle agency. The MSP also says its Traffic Car accident Reporting Unit does not manage driving records; questions about those records go to the Secretary of State’s Driving Records Activity Unit.

These sources also do not establish an insurer-notice deadline, a public-entity claim notice, or a lawsuit filing deadline. Those are not presented here as Michigan car accident-reporting requirements. Preserve your own records and obtain the official car accident report if you need one for another process. For practical next steps after a car accident, see What to Do After a Car accident and the Car accident Evidence Checklist.

How to find or request the UD-10

MSP describes the Traffic Car accident Reporting System as the central repository for statewide traffic-car accident data, and TCPS says it sells car accident reports submitted by all Michigan law-enforcement agencies. That scope is for submitted traffic car accident reports; it should not be treated as a promise that the system contains every separate police or investigative record connected with a car accident.

To purchase a UD-10 through TCPS, create or sign in with MiLogin. The state says the fee is $15, a credit card is required, and the purchased report is available for immediate download rather than by mail or email. The search requires all of the following:

• the date of the car accident;
• the date of birth of a person involved; and
• either a driver license number or the case/incident number.

MSP says reports typically take 3–30 days to process, and they may be purchased through the Traffic Car accident Reporting Unit for up to 10 years after the car accident. If you lack the required TCPS search information, TCPS directs you to request the report through FOIA. The MSP FOIA FAQ likewise says a person may use the MSP Public Records Request Portal or submit a request by email, fax, or mail instead of TCPS. A written request needs to describe the requested record sufficiently; fees for a FOIA request vary with record type and retrieval/review labor.

Documents and identifiers to gather

Before contacting the reporting agency or TCPS, gather the car accident date, the agency name, case/incident number if known, a driver license number for one involved driver, and the involved driver’s date of birth. Keep the location and names of the people involved with your own records as well. Do not expect the Traffic Car accident Reporting Unit to give you a case number, insurance information, or personal details by phone, mail, email, or fax; MSP directs people to the reporting agency for the case/incident number.

If the report is unavailable or is held by another office

Start with the agency that responded or is listed as the Department Name on the UD-10. MSP says that agency is the contact for a case/incident number and for proposed changes to the report. Michigan law also requires the local police department, sheriff’s department, or local MSP post that made the report to retain a copy of a report under § 257.622 for at least three years.

If you need a record from MSP that is not available through TCPS—or you do not have the identifiers TCPS requires—use the official MSP Records Request Portal and FOIA instructions. MSP accepts an online portal request and lists email, fax, and mail alternatives; submit only once. The MSP FOIA FAQ says an initial response is issued within five business days, though it may be a notice extending time to gather and review responsive records. For a local agency’s separate records, contact that agency’s records office and follow its own public-records procedure.

Official resources

• Michigan State Police: Traffic Car accident Reporting Unit — statewide car accident-reporting program and report processing information.
• Traffic Car accident Purchasing System (TCPS) — official online purchase portal for submitted Michigan law-enforcement car accident reports.
• Michigan State Police: Traffic Car accident Reporting Unit FAQs — filing, timing, corrections, and report-access information.
• Michigan State Police: FOIA requests — records-request portal, alternatives, and contact details.
• Michigan car accident-report resources and guides.

Sources

1. Michigan Legislature, MCL § 257.622: report of accidents resulting in death, personal injury, or property damage
2. Michigan Legislature, MCL § 257.620: accidents involving an attended or unattended vehicle
3. Michigan Legislature, MCL § 257.621: accidents involving fixtures on or adjacent to a highway
4. Michigan State Police, Traffic Crash Reporting Unit FAQs
5. Michigan State Police, Traffic Crash Purchasing System
6. Michigan State Police, Freedom of Information Act requests