You should always call 911 and report a car accident. This not only gets an ambulance crew out to help with your injuries, but it also brings a police officer. This officer will write up a report which can help you prove and win your case.
To get a police report, you first need to report the crash. From there, the officer will write up the report. It is usually available within 7-14 days of the crash. You can obtain a copy from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department for $12 online, in person, or by mail.
For help with your car accident case, call the Las Vegas personal injury lawyers at Mitchell Rogers Injury Law at (702) 702-2622.
Which Police Department Has My Crash Report?
Car accidents in the Las Vegas area are usually handled by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD).
Many tourists and people in Las Vegas on business might not realize that the actual city limits of Las Vegas exclude areas like the Las Vegas Strip (located almost entirely within Paradise, NV). Even so, the LVMPD covers all of Clark County, including outlying suburbs like Boulder City, Henderson, and Winchester.
This police department is a combined force encompassing the sheriff’s department as well. This means that nearly any officer who might respond to your crash in the greater Las Vegas area will be an LVMPD officer.
Getting a Crash Report from the Las Vegas Police
As mentioned, the Las Vegas Police are part of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, which covers the whole of Clark County. You can obtain a report from this police department in three ways:
Online
The LVMPD website gives information about getting a report online, including a link for individuals to get a report and a link for lawyers. You should use the individual link.
There is no special treatment by clicking on the lawyer form, and it actually requires additional forms to prove you have permission to get the client’s report. It also costs the same either way.
In Person
Getting a report in person is as simple as going to the nearest police station or the main LVMPD headquarters and requesting the report. Reports can only be released to people involved in the crash or who have authorization to get a copy.
You can also order a report online to pick up in person.
By Mail
Getting a report by mail means filling out a form and mailing it to the address on the form.
In your envelope, you must also include a notarized letter, a copy of your driver’s license, and payment. The payment must be a money order or cashier’s check. This makes this a much harder way to get your report.
Do I Need to Get a Copy of My Police Report?
In general, our lawyers can help you collect evidence after your crash. The sooner you call us and begin working with us, the sooner we can collect evidence.
Especially when you are injured, you should focus on recovery, not running around collecting records. Our Nevada car accident attorneys can request copies of your police report, medical records, and other evidence.
We can also seek evidence from other parties to help build your case, such as security and dashcam footage.
How Much Does a Copy of a Police Report Cost in Las Vegas?
Whether you get the report online, in person, or by mail, it costs $12.00. However, you might need to print the form and get it notarized to mail in your form – plus pay for postage – making this more expensive.
What Info Do I Need to Get a Copy of a Police Crash Report?
To obtain a copy of your police report, the police department needs to know what crash the report is for and see some proof that you were involved.
Online Form
The online form for a police report requires your personal information (name, address, etc.) and an identification number to prove who you are. Your driver’s license number is sufficient, but other ID card numbers and passports are also accepted.
Above that on the form, you also need the crash information:
- The “Event Number,” typically provided by the officer at the scene
- The date and time of the incident
- As much information as you can provide (parties involved, cross streets, etc.) of the incident.
There is also a checkbox for the type of report. You would select “Traffic Accident Report.”
When providing this information, give as much as you can. If you are missing some info, they might still be able to locate the report.
In Person/By Mail
The same sorts of info are required to request the report in person or by mail. In person, you can show your ID instead of giving the number, and for a mail-in request, you need to provide a photocopy of the ID card.
Otherwise, the process is basically the same for these methods.
What Information is in a Police Report in Las Vegas?
Your crash report will contain a lot of the same evidence you can collect at the scene of the crash:
- Who was involved
- Where it happened
- Who was injured
- Info on weather, road conditions, and lighting
- Location of vehicle damage
- Vehicles involved
- Witness info
- Any citations issued
- Any statements made
- Officer’s observations.
Some of this can be used to build your case, though it likely cannot be put into evidence. The report itself would be hearsay, so unless there are excuses allowing that hearsay, we can limit the evidence to building our case.
Additionally, there is usually a narrative section where the officer says what happened to cause the crash. The officer usually does not see the crash happen, so this is based on secondhand information. This, again, makes it hearsay.
However, if the officer took photos of the scene or diagramed the accident, those parts of the report might be excellent evidence for your trial.
Call Our Las Vegas Car Accident Lawyers Today
Call (702) 702-2622 for a free case evaluation with our Las Vegas car accident lawyers at Mitchell Rogers Injury Law today.