Hit-and-Run and Driving Without a License in California

Attorney Answer

Officers have already been to your door, so the most important thing on this page is what not to do: say nothing further to the police, the other driver, or any insurer until a criminal-defense attorney has heard the facts. Yes — property-damage hit-and-run is a misdemeanor in California. No — nobody can tell you what you will pay. That figure comes from the actual repair cost and, if there is a case, from a court, and this page will not guess at it.

The statute is Cal. Veh. Code § 20002(a). It requires the driver of any vehicle involved in an accident resulting only in damage to property, including vehicles, 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 to notify the police or the California Highway Patrol without unnecessary delay. It is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in county jail and a fine of up to $1,000.

Driving without a license is a separate offense under a different statute, with its own penalties, and it is often charged alongside the first. Ask the defense attorney to explain both charges together, since they are usually resolved together.

Your money question has three parts, and they do not add up to one number. First, the fine: § 20002 allows up to $1,000. Second, restitution — if there is a conviction, a court can order you to pay for the damage you caused, measured by what the repair actually costs, proved by an estimate. Third, the owner's civil claim, which exists whether or not there is ever a criminal case: Cal. Civ. Code § 1714(a) makes everyone responsible for an injury occasioned to another by want of ordinary care, and Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 338(c)(1) gives the owner three years from the accident to sue over the damage to the vehicle. All three track the real cost of the repair. Anyone quoting you a figure without the estimate is guessing.

The police visit tells you an investigation is open, and it tells you something else: they have your photograph and your car. That means the questions coming at you are not about identifying you. They are about getting your account. What you say is very often the whole case, and it is the one piece of evidence you still control.

What you can do

1. Talk to a local criminal-defense attorney today, before you answer any further contact from the police. If officers come back, you can tell them you want a lawyer, and then stop.

2. Do not write out, type, text, email or record your account of what happened, and do not post about it. 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 repair, wash or repaint your vehicle before your attorney has seen it.

5. Do not contact the other driver to apologize or to offer to pay. Paying for damage is not the same as resolving criminal exposure, and doing it alone can complicate both.

6. Gather the papers that already exist — your registration, your insurance declarations page, and anything the officers left with you, such as a card or a case number — and take them to the first meeting.

7. Ask that attorney about the license question, about the DMV accident-reporting requirement in Cal. Veh. Code § 16000(a), and about notifying your own insurer. All three 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. The owner's civil claim for the damage runs on Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 338(c)(1), which allows three years from the date of the accident. How long the state has to file a criminal charge is a different question governed by different rules, and if you are given a citation or a court date, that date controls and does not wait for anything else. 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.