What should I do after a car accident in Minnesota?
Quick answer
Check for injuries and move out of traffic if the cars are drivable. Call 911 when anyone is hurt or vehicles are disabled. Exchange license, registration, and insurance details, photograph everything, and report the crash to your insurer. Then choose your repair shop — in Minnesota that choice is legally yours.
At the scene
Work down this list — it covers your safety and your claim:
- Check everyone for injuries; call 911 if anyone is hurt
- Move drivable cars out of traffic; hazards on
- Exchange driver’s license, registration, insurance, and plate numbers
- Photograph both vehicles, the scene, skid marks, and visible injuries
- Get witness names and numbers; note time, location, weather
- Don’t argue fault at the scene — say little, document a lot
The first 48 hours
Minnesota requires a crash report to the Department of Public Safety when someone is injured or damage is significant; police at the scene usually handle it. Report the crash to your insurer promptly — your PIP (no-fault) coverage handles initial injury costs regardless of fault.
For vehicle damage, the at-fault driver’s carrier pays. If fault is disputed or the other driver is uninsured, your own collision coverage steps in, and your insurer pursues theirs.
Getting the car repaired
You choose the shop — Minnesota law forbids insurer steering. Call us at (651) 460-9996: if the car isn’t drivable we arrange the tow, we can open the claim with you in one phone call, and the adjuster meets the car at our shop. From there you get a written estimate, a timeline, and one person handling it start to finish.
