Short answer: After a California crash involving an Uber trip or an Uber vehicle, treat the paperwork as separate tasks. Put immediate safety first. Then use the Uber route that fits your role, check whether the driver must submit California’s SR-1 to DMV, and separately check the written law-enforcement rule for an injury or death crash. An Uber confirmation is not proof that an SR-1 was filed: DMV says an SR-1 is required in addition to a report to police, CHP, or an insurance company. California DMV’s SR-1 instructions
For a person driving with Uber, Uber’s current instructions say to open the Driver app, select the Safety Toolkit (the blue shield), choose Report a crash, describe what happened, and submit the claim. Uber asks drivers to do this as soon as reasonably possible. Uber: “What to do after a car accident”
Uber currently appears on the California Public Utilities Commission’s issued-TNC-permit list as Uber Technologies Inc., doing business as Uber, TCP 38150. The CPUC carrier record linked from that list showed an active TNC permit running February 4, 2025 through February 4, 2028 when this guide was verified. That operating-authority record does not establish that a particular trip, driver, vehicle, or crash has coverage. CPUC TNC permits issued · CPUC carrier record for Uber Technologies Inc.
A practical first checklist
- Address immediate safety. If there are injuries or damage, Uber’s driver instructions say to contact police and paramedics. If a report number is created, save it. Uber’s driver crash instructions
- Preserve the basics while they are available. Photograph vehicle damage and, if safe, the location. Save contact and insurance information for other drivers and riders, the vehicle plate, the police report number if one exists, and the Uber trip details. Uber specifically recommends photos and contact/insurance information. Uber’s driver crash instructions
- Record the app phase. Note whether the driver was offline, logged in and available, had accepted a request and was traveling to pickup, or was traveling with a rider. California’s TNC insurance statute and Uber’s posted certificate distinguish these periods. California Public Utilities Code § 5433 · Uber’s California certificate of insurance
- Send the Uber notice through the route for your role. The driver, the rider who requested the trip, and a person without an Uber account do not use the same starting point. The routes are below.
- Do the California reporting check separately. A driver may need to file an SR-1 within 10 days, and an injury or death crash can trigger a separate written CHP or city-police report rule. Do not wait for Uber or an insurer to make this decision for you. California DMV SR-1 · California Vehicle Code § 20008
- Use the insurance path that fits the vehicle and policy. A commercial driver’s policy, a rideshare driver’s personal-policy endorsement, and Uber’s TNC policies can have different roles. Keep each claim number, upload confirmation, and insurer message.
- Keep a simple record. Store the crash date and time, location, report numbers, documents submitted, and the name or confirmation number for each separate process.
Use the Uber route that matches your role
If you were driving with Uber
Uber’s driver page directs drivers to the Driver app’s Safety Toolkit and then Report a crash. The same page offers the Safety Incident Reporting Line through Help → Safety in the app and links a separate crash-report route. Uber says its claims support team will guide the driver through the claims process and report to the insurance coverage provider in the driver’s state. Uber: “What to do after a car accident”
If you requested the Uber trip as a rider
Uber’s serious-incident page tells a person with an Uber account who requested the trip to select the applicable issue from its list, including its linked “I was involved in an accident” route. Use the trip connected to the incident where the account interface permits it, and retain the confirmation. Uber: “Report a serious incident involving a driver or vehicle”
If you were not an Uber account holder, or were a co-rider or witness
Uber describes its Report a serious incident involving a driver or vehicle form as a route for people without Uber accounts to report incidents including car accidents. The page also says a co-rider or third-party witness may use the form to help Uber identify the trip. It asks for items such as the incident date, time, location, plate, description, phone number, and a contact email that must be confirmed. Uber’s no-account serious-incident form
Uber’s driver crash instructions also link a Third Party Incident Notice for third parties. Uber third-party incident notice
Keep California reports, Uber notice, and claims separate
1. California DMV SR-1
California DMV says that you, an insurance agent, broker, or legal representative must send an SR-1 to DMV within 10 days if anyone was injured, no matter how minor the injury, or killed, or if property damage was over $1,000. The DMV page asks for the driver’s license or ID, the driver’s insurance information, and, when applicable, the other party’s vehicle and insurance information. A printable form is available if needed; DMV says paper submissions are likely to take longer to process. California DMV: Report of Traffic Accident Occurring in California (SR-1)
The statute similarly requires a driver involved in a qualifying crash to report it within 10 days on a DMV-approved form, subject to stated exceptions. One stated exception concerns a vehicle owned, leased, or directed by specified government entities. California Vehicle Code § 16000
What this does not replace: DMV expressly says the SR-1 is in addition to a report to police, CHP, or an insurance company. It is not the Uber notice route or a request for a copy of a CHP report. California DMV SR-1 instructions
2. Written CHP or city-police report for an injury or death crash
California Vehicle Code section 20008 says that the driver of a vehicle, other than a common-carrier vehicle, involved in an accident resulting in injury or death must make or cause a written report within 24 hours to CHP. If the crash occurred within a city, the report may go to CHP or the city police department. The statute has a separate reporting timing provision for the owner or driver of a common-carrier vehicle. California Vehicle Code § 20008
This statutory rule is separate from an emergency call, an officer’s on-scene investigation, an Uber notice, and the DMV SR-1. The statute’s common-carrier distinction should not be assumed from an Uber label alone.
3. Uber incident notice
Uber directs a driver to report a crash through the Driver app and provides separate routes for account-holding riders and people without accounts. This company notice starts Uber’s incident and claims-support process; it does not generate an SR-1 confirmation or a CHP report copy. Uber driver crash instructions · Uber’s no-account incident route
4. Notice to a personal or commercial insurer
Policy notice is separate from the DMV and police processes. Uber’s driver crash page says its claims support team guides drivers through reporting to the state insurance coverage provider and says a personal insurer need not be notified unless there is a relevant endorsement. The same page separately directs commercially licensed and insured limousine, livery, black-car, or private-hire drivers to contact their commercial automobile insurer in addition to reporting the crash to Uber. Uber’s driver crash instructions
The policy in force, driver role, vehicle use, app phase, and any endorsement determine what additional notice or coverage may apply. Keep the applicable policy and claim correspondence with the crash record.
5. Requesting a CHP crash report copy
A request for a CHP report copy is different from filing a crash report. CHP says a proper party of interest may request a copy through the Crash Portal or submit CHP 190 in person or by mail to the nearest CHP Area office. CHP lists drivers, passengers, vehicle/property owners, legal representatives, and insurers with a valid claim or policy number among proper parties of interest. The Area office provides the applicable fee amount. California Highway Patrol: Request a Crash Report
6. Government claim and court action
A report to Uber, DMV, CHP, or an insurer is not a government claim or a lawsuit. California Government Code section 911.2 sets a six-month presentation period after accrual for specified death, personal-injury, personal-property, and growing-crop claims against public entities; it sets one year for other causes of action. California Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 states a two-year period for specified actions for injury to or death of an individual caused by another’s wrongful act or neglect. Those statutes have their own scope and possible timing questions. California Government Code § 911.2 · California Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1
Documents and evidence to keep
Keep the following in one folder or photo album so the separate reports do not get mixed together:
- Uber trip information, the incident-report confirmation, and a screenshot or note showing the app phase.
- Photos of the vehicles, damage, and location when safe to take them.
- Names and contact details for drivers, riders, witnesses, and responding agencies.
- Vehicle plate, registration, insurance details, and the driver’s license or ID information needed for an SR-1.
- The police or CHP report number, if one exists; the SR-1 submission confirmation or printed copy; and any CHP 190 request confirmation.
- Each insurer’s claim number, adjuster contact details, policy or endorsement documents, and Uber-related carrier correspondence.
- Receipts or records connected to the crash that may be relevant to an insurer or authorized claims process.
Insurance: app phase and policy type matter
California’s TNC statute divides insurance requirements by the driver’s relationship to the app. From the time a participating driver accepts a ride request until the transaction is completed or the ride is complete, whichever is later, section 5433 requires primary TNC insurance in the statutory amount and requires specified UM/UIM coverage while a passenger is in the vehicle. In the logged-in period before accepting a request—and the post-transaction period described in the statute—section 5433 sets different primary and excess insurance requirements. California Public Utilities Code § 5433
California law also says a private-passenger policy is not required to provide coverage during the logged-in-to-logged-off period, including until a passenger exits, unless the policy expressly provides the coverage or has an applicable amendment or endorsement. California Public Utilities Code § 5434
Uber’s U.S. rideshare insurance page likewise distinguishes offline, online and available for a trip, and en route or on a trip. It says coverage to repair a driver’s car while en route or on a trip is contingent on the driver’s own comprehensive and collision coverage. Uber: Insurance for rideshare drivers
The current California certificate is a useful record, not a universal answer
Uber’s California certificate posted from its insurance page is dated February 25, 2026, names AIG Specialty Insurance Company, and lists policy periods of March 1, 2026 to March 1, 2027. The certificate describes coverage for a “rideshare driver” who is logged into the digital network application and:
- is available to receive transportation requests but has not recorded acceptance of a request; or
- has recorded acceptance and is traveling to pickup or to the final destination.
For the waiting-for-a-request period, the certificate lists bodily-injury and property-damage figures and a separate excess-auto-liability policy. For the accepted-request period, it lists a $1,000,000 combined single limit and a $2,500 collision/comprehensive deductible. It states that the policies are subject to their terms, exclusions, and conditions and that limits may have been reduced by paid claims. It also describes different UM/UIM treatment for the en-route and passenger portions of an accepted trip. Uber California certificate of liability insurance
The certificate’s phase language and policy dates are why it is useful to preserve the app status and exact trip timing. Actual claim handling depends on the policy, the vehicle and driver’s role, the verified app/trip phase, and the crash facts.
Commercial and livery vehicles are different
Uber’s commercial-coverage FAQ says that a commercial driver using a commercially licensed vehicle—such as a licensed for-hire vehicle, black car, limousine, livery vehicle, or taxi—must have that driver’s own commercial insurance. Uber says the commercial auto-liability policies it maintains for rideshare drivers do not cover trips as a commercial driver, including listed premium and economy products. Uber: Commercial Insurance Coverage FAQ
If a process is not working
- SR-1 online route unavailable: Return to the official DMV SR-1 page. DMV provides a printable form and notes that paper processing may take longer.
- Need a CHP record rather than a new report: Use CHP’s Crash Portal or CHP 190 procedure if you are a proper party of interest.
- Insurance handling concern: The California Department of Insurance’s consumer-help page provides an electronic complaint route and a printable non-health complaint form. That complaint route is separate from an SR-1, an Uber notice, and a court filing.
- Public-entity involvement or a deadline question: Keep the government-claim and court-action processes separate from crash reporting. The statutory periods above are not extensions of an SR-1, police report, Uber notice, or insurer claim.
Related AccidentFiling.ai resources
For the California-wide state-reporting steps without the Uber-specific routing, see the California Crash Reporting Guide. You can also browse the Rideshare Accident Guides collection.
Official sources
- California DMV — Report of Traffic Accident Occurring in California (SR-1), verified September 12, 2026.
- California Legislative Information — Vehicle Code § 16000, verified September 12, 2026.
- California Legislative Information — Vehicle Code § 20008, verified September 12, 2026.
- Uber Help — What to do after a car accident, verified September 12, 2026.
- Uber Help — Report a serious incident involving a driver or vehicle, verified September 12, 2026.
- Uber — Insurance for rideshare drivers, verified September 12, 2026.
- Uber — California Certificate of Liability Insurance, dated February 25, 2026; verified September 12, 2026.
- Uber — Commercial Insurance Coverage FAQ, verified September 12, 2026.
- California Legislative Information — Public Utilities Code § 5433, verified September 12, 2026.
- California Legislative Information — Public Utilities Code § 5434, verified September 12, 2026.
- California Public Utilities Commission — Transportation Network Company Permits Issued and Uber carrier record, verified September 12, 2026.
- California Highway Patrol — Request a Crash Report, verified September 12, 2026.
- California Department of Insurance — Getting Help, verified September 12, 2026.
- California Legislative Information — Government Code § 911.2 and Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1, verified September 12, 2026.