How to Get a State-Level Rideshare Accident Report in Massachusetts

Short answer

For a police rideshare accident report in Massachusetts, start with the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV). The RMV accepts requests for a standard or certified copy of a police rideshare accident report that was filed by a Massachusetts state or local police agency and processed by the RMV. This is a statewide access route for those processed records—not a promise that every agency’s record is already available there. The RMV says to wait at least four weeks after the rideshare accident before requesting it, charges a $20 non-refundable search fee for each report, and says processing takes about four weeks. Request a Copy of a Police Rideshare accident Report — RMV

If the RMV cannot locate the report, or if a local department was the investigating agency, ask the Records Access Officer (RAO) of the city, town, or agency that created or received the record. That is the Commonwealth’s stated route for records held by another government agency. Massachusetts Public Records Division

Immediate checklist

Confirm which law-enforcement agency investigated the rideshare accident and save any incident or case number you were given.
Wait at least four weeks after the rideshare accident before sending an RMV rideshare accident-report request.
Gather the rideshare accident date, city or town, involved person’s name, driver’s license number and state, and plate number and state. The RMV’s mail form asks for these rideshare accident identifiers.
Use the RMV online route if you are an individual with a Massachusetts-issued credential. Use the appropriate mail route if you do not have one, are an authorized recipient, or are a DPPA permitted user without Rideshare accident Program access.
Pay the RMV’s $20 non-refundable search fee for each requested report.
If the RMV report is not found, request the record from the investigating agency’s RAO; use the Massachusetts State Police public-records channel only for records the State Police created or received.

Keep the police report and the operator report separate

The police rideshare accident report requested from the RMV is an agency-filed record: the RMV describes it as a report filed by a Massachusetts state or local police agency and processed by the RMV. It is different from the written report that an involved driver may have to file. The RMV’s Rideshare accident Program likewise says its reports are limited to rideshare accident reports filed by Massachusetts state law enforcement or local Massachusetts police agencies. RMV Rideshare accident Program

Massachusetts General Laws chapter 90, section 26 requires a person operating a motor vehicle involved in a rideshare accident to submit a written report to the Registrar within five days when someone was killed or injured, or when damage exceeds $1,000 to any one vehicle or other property. The same statute requires a copy to the police department with jurisdiction over the way where the rideshare accident occurred. The incapacity and owner provisions in the statute also apply. M.G.L. c. 90, § 26

The RMV’s reporting instructions direct the completed Rideshare accident Operator Report to three places: the local police department or State Police in the city or town where the rideshare accident occurred, the insurance company, and the RMV. The RMV says there is no fee to submit that form. That operator-report process does not replace a request for an agency police rideshare accident report, and a request for a copy does not complete the operator report. Report a rideshare accident — RMV

Who may request an RMV police rideshare accident report

For a processed report, the RMV says the following requesters may use its process:

An individual involved in the rideshare accident: an operator, vehicle owner, vehicle occupant, vulnerable user, or witness. The individual must have a current or expired credential.
A Massachusetts registered business whose vehicle was involved in the rideshare accident.
An authorized recipient, with the identification materials the RMV requires.
A permitted user under the federal Driver Privacy Protection Act (DPPA).

The RMV’s mail form also includes a requestor type for a property owner who suffered property damage. It is important to use the request path and form section that match the requestor type rather than assuming every route is available to every requester. Request for Copy of Police Rideshare accident Report form

The Rideshare accident Program is for DPPA-permitted business users, not the normal route for an individual. It may provide reports with highly restricted information and fields redacted. RMV Rideshare accident Program

How to request the record from the RMV

Online. An individual involved in the rideshare accident with a Massachusetts-issued credential should select “Request Rideshare accident Report” in the Reports section of myRMV. The RMV lists these required online details for an individual: driver’s license or learner’s permit number, first and last name, date of birth, the driver’s Social Security number, email address, and the applicable fee. A Massachusetts registered business uses its federal identification number, plate type, last four VIN digits, and registration number. DPPA permitted users with a Rideshare accident Account ID use the Rideshare accident Portal route. RMV request instructions

By mail. The RMV limits mailed police-rideshare accident-report requests to people without a Massachusetts-issued credential, authorized recipients, and DPPA permitted users without access to the Rideshare accident Program. Mail the completed official request form, the applicable identification copy, and a $20 check or money order payable to MassDOT to:

Registry of Motor Vehicles
Rideshare accident Records
P.O. Box 55889
Boston, MA 02205

A mailed request needs a photocopy of the requestor’s license or state-issued ID. For an authorized recipient, the RMV requires copies of both the person authorizing release’s identification and the recipient’s identification. The form asks for the rideshare accident date and city or town, a person’s name and license information, and plate information; give as much of that information as you have so the RMV can search.

Timing, fee, and copy type

The RMV states a $20 non-refundable search fee per report. Its form offers both a standard and a certified police rideshare accident report at that amount. A certified copy bears the Registrar of Motor Vehicles’ official stamp; the standard copy does not. RMV request form

Wait at least four weeks after the rideshare accident before submitting the request, then allow about four weeks for RMV processing. If the report is not found, the RMV says it will continue searching its database for the requested report for 90 days from the rideshare accident date. These are RMV search and processing statements, not a guarantee that a particular investigating agency’s report has reached the RMV. RMV request instructions

If the report is unavailable or held by another agency

First, check the agency named on any rideshare accident paperwork or incident information. If the rideshare accident was investigated by a local police department or another government agency and the RMV does not have a processed report, request the record from the RAO for the agency that created or received it. The Secretary of the Commonwealth says the Public Records Division is not a warehouse for other agencies’ records and directs requesters to the RAO of the city, town, or state agency that created or received the records. Massachusetts Public Records Division

A useful written request identifies the report as precisely as possible: rideshare accident date and location, people or vehicles involved, the investigating agency, and any report number. The Commonwealth’s public-records guide says a request must reasonably describe the sought record and may be made in person or in writing; written requests may be delivered by hand, mail, email, or electronically to the RAO or custodian. A Guide to the Massachusetts Public Records Law

For a rideshare accident investigated by the Massachusetts State Police, its Public Records Unit accepts requests online, by email, by mail, and sometimes by telephone at the RAO’s discretion. The State Police asks for a reasonable description and preferred electronic format, warns that personally identifiable information may require redaction, and states that after the first four hours of work it may charge up to $25 per hour. Submit a public records request to the Massachusetts State Police

Official resources

For general next steps after a rideshare accident, see What to Do After a Rideshare accident and the Rideshare accident Evidence Checklist.

What changes when a rideshare trip is involved

Use this version when the event involved a transportation-network-company trip. Save the platform, rider or driver role, trip receipt, date and time, driver and vehicle profile, pickup and destination, app messages, and whether a request had been accepted or a passenger was in the vehicle.

Rideshare coverage can change with app and trip phase and state law. Platform notice is a separate task from a police or motor-vehicle report and from notice to a personal or commercial insurer.

Capture the trip and app status before details disappear.
Use the applicable operator’s current incident-reporting route.
Keep operator, police or DMV, and insurer confirmation numbers separate.

Browse the Rideshare Accident Guides collection for related pages.

Accident-type official sources

Uber or Lyft? Protect Yourself When Ridesharing — National Association of Insurance Commissioners
State Insurance Departments — National Association of Insurance Commissioners