Accused of Hit-and-Run: What California Law Requires

Attorney Answer

An accusation is not a charge, and the gap between the two is where most of the damage gets done — usually by the accused person explaining themselves. Do not give your account to the police, the other driver, or any insurer until a criminal-defense attorney has heard it. California has two hit-and-run statutes, and which one is in play — property damage only, or injury — decides how serious this is.

Cal. Veh. Code § 20002(a) covers accidents resulting only in damage to property, including vehicles. It requires the driver to stop immediately at the nearest location that will not impede traffic, and then to identify themselves to the owner or, if the owner is not present, leave written notice and then notify the police or the California Highway Patrol without unnecessary delay (§ 20002(a)(1)-(2)). That is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in county jail and a fine of up to $1,000.

Cal. Veh. Code § 20001(a) covers accidents resulting in injury to a person other than the driver, or in death. It requires the driver to stop immediately at the scene. The penalties are on another level: up to one year in county jail and a fine of $1,000 to $10,000, and where the accident results in death or permanent serious injury, two to four years in state prison or 90 days to one year in county jail.

Both sections share a feature that catches people out. Each is written around a driver being involved in an accident, not around a driver causing one. A driver who was not at fault for the collision still has the duty to stop. So "it wasn't my fault" is an answer to a different question, and offering it to an investigator mainly confirms that you were there.

It is also worth being clear about who is accusing you and what that is worth. An accusation can come from the other driver, from a witness, from an insurer, or from an officer who has taken a report. None of them decides anything. A prosecutor decides whether a charge is filed, and a court decides the rest. What fills the space in between is usually an interview, which is why the single most consequential decision you make now is whether you speak — and to whom.

The civil side is separate and runs on its own clock, whether or not a charge is ever brought. Cal. Civ. Code § 1714(a) makes everyone responsible for an injury occasioned to another by want of ordinary care. Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1 allows two years for an action for injury to, or the death of, an individual caused by another's wrongful act or neglect, and Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 338(c)(1) allows three years for damage to a vehicle.

What you can do

1. Talk to a local criminal-defense attorney before you respond to the accusation in any form. Most will take the call quickly, and the call itself is not an admission of anything.

2. Do not write out, type, text, email or record your account of what happened, and do not post about it — including a reply to whoever is accusing you. Anything you create can be obtained.

3. Do not delete messages, photos or posts that already exist. Preserving is safe; deleting can create a separate and worse problem.

4. Do not have a friend or relative call the police, message the other driver, or ask questions for you. Third-party inquiries get traced back and treated as yours.

5. Leave the vehicle exactly as it is — no repairs, no wash, no replaced parts — until your attorney has seen it.

6. Gather what already exists and take it to the first meeting: any letter, claim number, police card or citation you have received, your registration, and your insurance declarations page.

7. Ask that attorney about the DMV accident-reporting requirement under Cal. Veh. Code § 16000(a) and about notifying your own insurer. Both involve statements and their own timing. Most lawyers offer a brief initial call at no cost, and a few minutes on your specific facts is worth more than any general guidance, including this page.

⏱ Time limits apply. If you have received a citation or charging papers, the date on them controls and is far shorter than any civil deadline. The civil claims that can follow run on their own clocks: Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1 allows two years for injury or death, and Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 338(c)(1) three years for damage to a vehicle, both ordinarily from the accident. How long the state has to bring a charge is a different question, governed by rules not covered here, and the DMV reporting deadline is shorter than any of these. Nothing here computes a date for you. Have a local criminal-defense attorney review your dates now.