New Jersey gives every citizen the right to inspect and copy a police crash report, and to buy one in person at the public-records rate of five cents per letter size page. Ask for it any other way and the department may add up to $5. The State Police portal charges $13.00 for a non-toll road crash and $5.00 for a toll road crash. Officers file within five days. If no officer files a report, you owe the Motor Vehicle Commission a written one within 10 days, and that report is confidential.
New Jersey, verified
Key Facts (verified July 2026)
Last updated
- Not confidential
- N.J.S.A. 39:4-131: reports prepared by law enforcement officers "shall not be privileged or held confidential," and every citizen may inspect and copy them during business hours.
- The counter price
- Purchases in person are set at the OPRA rate: $0.05 per letter size page or smaller, $0.07 per legal size page or larger. A short report can cost under a dollar.
- The remote surcharge
- If copies are requested other than in person, the department may add up to $5 for administrative costs, and it must offer you the choice of in person, mail, or fax.
- State Police prices
- $13.00 for non-toll road and boat crash reports, $5.00 for toll road crashes, $20.00 for serious and fatal records, and photo prints at $5.00 each for the first ten, then $3.00.
- The five-day clock
- Officers must electronically transmit the report to the Department of Transportation within five days of the investigation. Reports are retained for six years.
- Your own report
- Injury, death, or more than $500 damage means notice by the quickest means plus a written report to the Motor Vehicle Commission within 10 days, unless an officer files one.
- Opposite rules
- The driver report is "without prejudice," not open to public inspection, and inadmissible except to prove compliance. The officer report is public and carries no such bar.
- The next-of-kin duty
- After a death or incapacitation, the officer notifying next of kin must also tell the relative in writing how to obtain the report and who is storing the vehicle.
- 2024, officially
- NJSP Fatal Accident Investigation Unit: 647 fatal crashes and 684 deaths, up 12.9% from 2023. Pedestrian deaths jumped from 171 to 227, about a third of all deaths.
The state that says out loud that crash reports are not confidential
Most states arrive at crash-report access through a maze of privacy statutes, permissible uses, and redaction rules. New Jersey settles it in a single sentence. Section 39:4-131 provides that the written or electronic reports prepared by law enforcement officers, and the information in them, “shall not be privileged or held confidential,” and that every citizen of the State has the right, during regular business hours and under supervision, to inspect and copy them.
The price follows the same logic. Rather than letting each department invent a number, the statute pegs an in-person purchase to the fee in the Open Public Records Act, which sets duplication at $0.05 per letter size page or smaller and $0.07 per legal size page or larger. A typical crash report of a few pages therefore costs pocket change at the counter. Request it some other way and the department may add up to $5 for administrative costs, but even that ceiling is fixed by law rather than by the agency, and the statute requires the department to let you submit the form and fee in person, by mail, or by fax.
Two caveats keep this honest. First, openness is not the same as unredacted: before releasing any government record, a custodian must remove certain identifiers, including social security numbers, credit card numbers, personal telephone numbers, and driver licence numbers. Second, the State Police price their own reports separately, which is where most of the money in New Jersey crash retrieval actually changes hands.
Every New Jersey door, and what the law says about each
Verified against the statutes and the State Police portal, July 2026.
| Door | Cost | The rule behind it | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Municipal police, in person | $0.05 per letter size page, $0.07 per legal size page, the statutory OPRA rate | Section 39:4-131 gives every citizen the right to inspect, copy, and purchase in person | Almost always the cheapest route, and the one that gets skipped |
| Municipal police, by mail or fax | Same page rate plus up to $5 for administrative costs | The department must offer submission and payment in person, by mail, or by fax | Convenience is capped by statute at $5 rather than left to the agency |
| State Police online portal | $13.00 non-toll road and boat crashes, $5.00 toll road crashes, $20.00 serious and fatal records | Reports appear only once completed and approved; six-year retention | Photo prints $5.00 each for the first ten, $3.00 after |
| The report you file yourself | Free, and due within 10 days only if no officer filed one | Confidential, not open to public inspection, and inadmissible except to prove you complied | The mirror image of the officer's report in every respect |
One more saving worth asking about: the Open Public Records Act provides that no fee shall be charged to a victim of a crime for a copy of a record the victim is entitled to access. Hit and run, impaired driving, and assault by auto crashes are worth raising on that basis.
Not sure which agency worked your crash, or what it should cost?
Two reports from one crash, following opposite rules
New Jersey can generate two documents from the same collision, and the law treats them as near mirror images. The officer’s report, governed by 39:4-131, is public, purchasable by any citizen, and carries no statutory bar on its use. Your own report, governed by 39:4-130, is the reverse: it is “without prejudice,” is for the information of the Motor Vehicle Commission, and “shall not be open to public inspection.” The fact that you filed it is admissible solely to prove you complied, and no part of it may be used for any other purpose in any action arising out of the crash.
The duty to file that second report is narrower than most pages suggest. It arises when a crash causes injury, death, or more than $500 in damage to any one person’s property, and it runs to 10 days. But the statute then adds the exception that changes the answer for most drivers: a written report “shall not be required by this section if a law enforcement officer submits a written report of the accident” under 39:4-131. If police investigated and filed, you are done.
When it does apply, skipping it is not costless. A knowing violation draws a fine of $30 to $100, and the chief administrator may suspend or revoke a licence and registration. Suppressing evidence of a violation or concealing the violator’s identity carries $250 to $1,000. And a driver who knowingly fails to file triggers a permissive inference that the registered owner was the person involved, with the inference shifting to the renter or lessee where the vehicle is rented or leased. The statute also removes the obvious excuse: it is no defence that you did not know the extent of the injury or damage, as long as you knew you were in a crash. Our report-terminology guide maps how this substitute-report design compares with states that demand a driver report even when police attend.
The provision that tells a grieving family how to get the report
Buried at the end of 39:4-131 is a duty that exists almost nowhere else. When a motor vehicle crash results in the death or incapacitation of a driver or any passenger, the officer responsible for notifying the next of kin must also inform the relative, in writing, how to obtain a copy of the accident report, together with the name, address, and telephone number of the person storing the vehicle.
In other words, New Jersey does not expect a family in the worst week of their life to work out the records process on their own. If you are the next of kin and no such written information reached you, that is worth raising with the department, and it is a reasonable thing to ask for by reference to the statute.
The verbal threshold, and why the report feeds it
New Jersey drivers elect one of two tort options, and the choice decides whether an injury claim can ever include pain and suffering. Under N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8, the limitation on lawsuit option, widely called the verbal threshold, exempts the other driver from liability for noneconomic loss unless the injured person sustained one of six things: death, dismemberment, significant disfigurement or significant scarring, displaced fractures, loss of a fetus, or a permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability. The statute defines permanence carefully: the body part or organ has not healed to function normally and will not heal to function normally with further treatment.
There is also a deadline that catches people out. To satisfy the threshold, a plaintiff must serve the defendant with a certification from the treating physician, or a board-certified physician they were referred to, within 60 days of the defendant’s answer. It has to be made under penalty of perjury and rest on objective clinical evidence. That is a short clock running on medical proof, not paperwork.
The crash report matters at both ends of that process. Its injury coding is the insurer’s first read on severity, and its account of the collision frames the liability argument the threshold unlocks. Reading it properly is the subject of our crash-report decoder.
Injured on a New Jersey road?
What the State Police numbers say
The New Jersey State Police Fatal Accident Investigation Unit recorded 647 fatal crashes and 684 deaths in 2024, an increase of 78 deaths, or 12.9%, over 2023. That reversed the previous year’s decline, when deaths had fallen 12% from 689 in 2022 to 606 in 2023.
The composition of that toll is the part worth pausing on. Pedestrian deaths rose from 171 in 2023 to 227 in 2024, which means roughly a third of everyone killed on New Jersey roads that year was on foot. Drivers accounted for 351 deaths, passengers 84, and cyclists 22. Pedestrian deaths clustered heavily in older age groups, with 60 victims aged 50 to 64 and 61 aged 65 to 79. The State Police note that these figures stay preliminary until the unit closes each case.
Step-by-step: getting your New Jersey report
Give notice at the scene if your crash clears the threshold
Injury, death, or more than $500 in damage to any one person's property triggers N.J.S.A. 39:4-130: notify local police, county police, or the State Police by the quickest means of communication. If you are physically unable, a capable occupant, or the vehicle owner, must do it for you.
Work out which agency investigated
Municipal police handle local streets, the State Police handle state highways and much of the toll road network, and Turnpike or Parkway crashes can also be requested through the New Jersey Turnpike Authority. The agency decides both the price and the process.
Allow five days for filing, and a little longer for approval
The officer must electronically transmit the report within five days of the investigation. The State Police portal warns that a report shows up only after it is completed and approved, so if a search comes up empty, try again in a couple of days rather than assuming no report exists.
For a municipal report, go in person and pay pennies
Section 39:4-131 entitles every citizen to inspect and copy crash reports and to purchase them in person at the OPRA rate of $0.05 per letter size page. Request it any other way and the department may add up to $5. The department must also offer you the choice of submitting your request and fee in person, by mail, or by fax.
For a State Police report, use the portal and check the road type
The NJSP crash report site charges $13.00 for a non-toll road report and $5.00 for a toll road crash, with serious and fatal records at $20.00 and photo prints at $5.00 each for the first ten. Certified copies come from the Criminal Justice Records Bureau in West Trenton instead.
If you were the victim of a crime, ask for the fee waiver
OPRA provides that no fee shall be charged to a victim of a crime for a copy of a record the victim is entitled to access. If your crash involved a hit and run, an impaired driver, or assault by auto, raise that when you request the report.
File your own report only if no officer filed one, then read theirs
The 10-day written report to the Motor Vehicle Commission is excused when an officer submits a report under 39:4-131. Once you have the officer's report, check its narrative, diagram, and coded conclusions against what happened, because unlike your own report it is admissible and it is what an adjuster will price your claim from.
New Jersey Accident Reports: Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get my accident report in New Jersey?
From the department that investigated, and the cheapest route is usually walking in. N.J.S.A. 39:4-131 gives every citizen the right to inspect and copy crash reports and to buy copies in person at the public-records rate, which is five cents per letter size page. If the State Police worked your crash, their online portal charges $13 for a non-toll road report, or $5 if the crash happened on a toll road.
Why is a New Jersey crash report so cheap in person?
Because the statute ties the price to the Open Public Records Act rather than letting each agency set it. Section 39:4-131 says citizens may purchase copies in person "at the same fee established by" N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5, and that section sets duplication at $0.05 per letter size page or smaller and $0.07 per legal size page or larger. A short report bought at the counter can therefore cost well under a dollar. If you ask for it any way other than in person, the department may add up to $5 for administrative costs.
Why do toll road crashes cost less?
The State Police portal prices them separately. A crash report from a non-toll road costs $13.00 and a boat crash report the same, while a toll road crash report costs $5.00. Serious and fatal crash records cost $20.00, and photo prints run $5.00 each for the first ten and $3.00 after that. Crashes on the Turnpike, Garden State Parkway, and other toll roads are the cheapest reports the State Police sell.
Are New Jersey crash reports confidential?
The officer's report is the opposite of confidential. Section 39:4-131 states that reports prepared by law enforcement officers "shall not be privileged or held confidential," and that every citizen may inspect and copy them during business hours. Before releasing any government record, though, the custodian must redact certain identifiers, including social security numbers, credit card numbers, personal telephone numbers, and driver licence numbers.
Do I have to file my own crash report in New Jersey?
Only when no officer files one. Under N.J.S.A. 39:4-130, a crash involving injury, death, or more than $500 in damage to any one person's property requires immediate notice by the quickest means to local police, county police, or the State Police, plus a written report to the Motor Vehicle Commission within 10 days. The statute then says plainly that the written report "shall not be required" if a law enforcement officer submits a report under 39:4-131. Many pages miss that exception.
Is the report I file myself also public?
No, and this is the neat symmetry in New Jersey law. Your own driver report under 39:4-130 is "without prejudice," is for the information of the Commission, and "shall not be open to public inspection." It is also inadmissible: the fact that you filed can be used to prove compliance, but no part of the report may be used for any other purpose in any action arising out of the crash. The officer's report, by contrast, is public and carries no such bar.
What happens if I skip the driver report?
A knowing violation carries a fine of $30 to $100, and the chief administrator may suspend or revoke your licence and registration. Two sharper provisions sit alongside it. Anyone who suppresses evidence of a violation or conceals the violator's identity faces a fine of $250 to $1,000. And if a driver knowingly fails to file, the law creates a permissive inference that the registered owner was the person involved, with a carve-out shifting that inference to the renter or lessee for rental and leased vehicles.
How quickly is a New Jersey crash report filed?
The investigating officer must electronically transmit the report to the Department of Transportation within five days of the investigation. The State Police portal notes that reports appear only once completed and approved, and suggests searching again in a couple of days if yours is not there yet. Crash investigation reports are kept for six years and are only available for six years from the year of the crash.
My relative died in a crash. Does anyone have to tell me how to get the report?
Yes, and this duty is written into the statute. When a crash results in the death or incapacitation of a driver or passenger, the officer responsible for notifying next of kin must also inform the relative, in writing, how to obtain a copy of the accident report, along with the name, address, and telephone number of whoever is storing the vehicle. It is one of the few provisions anywhere that puts the retrieval instructions in the family's hands automatically.
What is the verbal threshold and how does it affect my claim?
New Jersey drivers choose between two tort options, and the limitation on lawsuit option, commonly called the verbal threshold, bars recovery for pain and suffering unless the injury falls into one of six categories: death, dismemberment, significant disfigurement or significant scarring, displaced fractures, loss of a fetus, or a permanent injury. The statute also requires the plaintiff to serve a physician certification within 60 days of the defendant's answer, under penalty of perjury and based on objective clinical evidence.
How dangerous are New Jersey roads, officially?
The State Police Fatal Accident Investigation Unit recorded 647 fatal crashes and 684 deaths in 2024, up 78 deaths or 12.9% from 2023. The most striking movement was among people not in cars: pedestrian deaths rose from 171 in 2023 to 227 in 2024, meaning pedestrians accounted for roughly a third of everyone killed on New Jersey roads that year. Drivers accounted for 351 deaths, passengers 84, and cyclists 22.
Sources
Every fee, statute, deadline, and statistic on this page was verified against the following official sources on July 28, 2026. Note that the State Police moved their website to njsp.njoag.gov, so older links into nj.gov/njsp now redirect.
- New Jersey State Police: Crash Report Requests portal (fees for non-toll, toll road, serious and fatal reports, photo prints, six-year retention)
- New Jersey State Police: official site (now hosted at njsp.njoag.gov)
- NJSP Form SP-275: Request to Obtain Copies of State Police Reports and Photographs (PDF)
- N.J.S.A. 39:4-131: Accident reports; availability (five-day transmission, not privileged or confidential, citizen right to inspect and purchase, next-of-kin notice)
- N.J.S.A. 39:4-130: Immediate notice of accident; written report ($500 threshold, 10-day driver report, confidentiality, police-report exception)
- N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5: Open Public Records Act copy fees (five cents per letter size page, seven cents legal, no fee for crime victims, mandatory redactions)
- N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8: Tort exemption and limitation on the right to noneconomic loss (the verbal threshold categories and the 60-day certification)
- NJSP Fatal Accident Investigation Unit: Year to Date Statewide Fatal Crash Statistics for December 31, 2024 (PDF)
- NJSP: Fatal Crash Statistics (current year and archive)
- New Jersey Turnpike Authority: Accident Report Request (Turnpike and Garden State Parkway)
This guide is informational and is not legal advice. FindAccidentReport.com is sponsored by personal-injury attorneys; see our editorial standards for how we research and fund our guides.