What California Law Requires After a Parking Lot Hit-and-Run

Attorney Answer

A parking-lot hit-and-run runs on two separate tracks — a criminal duty on the driver who left, and a civil claim for the damage — and which one matters most depends on which side of it you were on.

The duty to stay is in the Vehicle Code. Cal. Veh. Code § 20002(a) covers a collision resulting only in damage to property, including vehicles: the driver must stop immediately at the nearest location that will not impede traffic, and the section then sets out, in § 20002(a)(1)-(2), the steps the driver must take to get identifying information to the other owner. A violation is a misdemeanor carrying up to six months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both. Where a person other than the driver was injured, or killed, the far more serious Cal. Veh. Code § 20001(a) applies instead and requires the driver to stop immediately at the scene; its penalties under subdivision (b) reach up to a year in county jail and a fine of $1,000 to $10,000, and two to four years in state prison where the collision caused death or permanent, serious injury. One limit worth naming: how these Vehicle Code duties apply inside a private parking lot is fact-specific, and this page cannot settle it.

The civil track is separate and does not depend on anyone being cited. Cal. Civ. Code § 1714(a) provides: "Everyone is responsible, not only for the result of his or her willful acts, but also for an injury occasioned to another by his or her want of ordinary care or skill in the management of his or her property or person, except so far as the latter has, willfully or by want of ordinary care, brought the injury upon himself or herself." That is the rule that decides who pays for the damage, whether or not a prosecutor ever gets involved.

What you can do

1. If your car was hit and the other driver left: photograph the damage, the position of your car, and any paint transfer or debris, before anything is moved or repaired.

2. Ask the property owner or manager in writing, immediately, to preserve the security footage for that date, time and location. Many systems overwrite within days.

3. Report it to the local police or sheriff so an official report exists, and give them any partial plate, vehicle description or witness contact you have.

4. Report the claim to your own insurer and ask which coverage applies and what it needs from you.

5. If you were the driver who left: do not write out, record or post your own account of what happened, and do not give a statement to police or to any insurer. Preserve records that already exist and add nothing to them.

6. In that situation, speak with a local criminal-defense attorney before any contact with law enforcement or the other side's insurer. If that lawyer tells you a report is legally required of you, make it.

7. Most lawyers offer a brief initial call at no cost, and a few minutes on your specific facts with someone who handles these cases in your area is worth more than any general guidance, including this page.

⏱ Time limits apply. A claim for damage to a vehicle runs on Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 338(c)(1)'s three years; where someone was injured, Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1's two years applies to that claim and is the shorter. Criminal charging deadlines are set separately and this page does not state them. Which period applies to you and when it started depend on facts this page does not have, so have a California attorney confirm the dates. This page does not compute any date.