Missouri Crash Reports: Highway Patrol, Fees and Forms
Who has your crash report, what drivers must report, insurance rules and traffic deaths in Missouri.
I-70 runs for 250 miles across the middle of Missouri, linking Kansas City and St. Louis, while I-44 and I-55 bring traffic toward St. Louis from the Joplin area and the Bootheel. Meanwhile, I-29, I-35, and I-49 spread out from Kansas City toward Iowa and Arkansas, keeping traffic moving in and out of the region.
With so many vehicles traveling these routes, crashes can happen anywhere along the way. The Missouri State Highway Patrol enforces traffic laws on those highways, and since Missouri has no toll roads, there is no toll authority to turn to for crash reports. Instead, where you get your report depends on which agency responded and whether a patrol officer or another law enforcement officer handled the crash.
Who Has Your Missouri Crash Report: Highway Patrol or Local Police
A Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report costs $6, and you can order it online from the Patrol’s Public Records Center once 10 days have passed since the crash investigation. The agency whose officer worked the crash holds the report. The Highway Patrol investigates crashes on the highways it patrols across the state, and its records system carries only crashes the Patrol investigated. If a city police department or a county agency took the report, request it from that department.
Highway Patrol reports come from the Patrol Records Division, and its Public Records Center is the Patrol’s preferred route: choose “Traffic Crash Report Request” and pay by debit or credit card, check, or money order. Report requests can also go by email, fax, or mail. The Patrol warns that a backlog means some reports take an extended period.
To order by mail, send the completed request form and a check or money order payable to “DPS – Missouri State Highway Patrol” to the troop headquarters that covers the crash location, or to Missouri State Highway Patrol, Patrol Records Division, Attention: Traffic Crash Reports, P.O. Box 568, Jefferson City, MO 65102. Cash is not accepted.
The $6 fee covers a basic crash report. Requests for certified copies, photographs, reconstruction reports, and reports on crashes from 1996 or earlier go to the Records Division, and certified copies, photographs, and reconstruction reports carry added fees.
The Patrol also posts Online Traffic Crash Reports, a preliminary, unofficial list of the injury and fatal crashes it investigated, and each entry stays online for one year. Each row gives the age, hometown, injury level, and safety device use of a person involved, along with the crash date, time, county, location, and troop, and the list shows no names.
You can search it by county, troop, crash location, a person’s city and state, date, injury type, or incident number, and the page links to the official report request.
Don’t want to sort out forms and mailing addresses, or not sure which agency took your report? We can get a copy of your report for you at no cost.
Police Reports From Missouri Cities
Kansas City, Springfield, Wentzville, and Clayton police sell crash reports online through BuyCrash, while St. Louis city police release them through their own records counter and public records portal. Each department keeps its own reports, so start with the department that responded.
| Department | How to request | Fee |
| Kansas City Police | BuyCrash online with the report number, a name, and the crash date; or any patrol division station with photo ID; or mail to the Criminal Records Section, 1125 Locust, Kansas City, MO 64106 | $9 online |
| St. Louis Metropolitan Police | Records Service Center, 1915 Olive St., weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with the request form and photo ID; or the department’s online public records portal. Crash reports are usually approved within 5 days | $0.10 per page and $15 per hour of search; a simple report normally runs under $5 |
| Springfield Police | BuyCrash online, allowing 7 to 10 business days; or walk in or mail to Police Headquarters, 321 E. Chestnut Expressway, Springfield, MO 65802 | $3 by mail or walk-in; online fee set at request |
| St. Joseph Police | “Request a Report” online through the Records Unit, open weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. | $30 per hour and $0.10 per page, plus a $9 convenience fee online |
| Wentzville Police | BuyCrash online with the crash date and report number | $13 online |
| Clayton Police | BuyCrash online, or a signed request mailed to the Records Division, 10 S. Brentwood Blvd., Clayton, MO 63105; allow at least two weeks | $12 online ($3 plus a $9 processing fee); $5 by mail |
In St. Louis, people involved in the crash can pick up a report in person, with a notarized release if they are asking on someone else’s behalf. Attorneys and insurers have to file a Sunshine Law request.
What Missouri Drivers Must Report
Under RSMo 577.060, a driver who knows of a crash that injured or killed someone or damaged another person’s property must stop and give their name, address, vehicle registration and license number to the other party or a police officer. If no officer is near, the information goes to the nearest law enforcement agency. Leaving the scene is a class A misdemeanor, a class E felony when someone is hurt, damage tops $1,000 or the driver has a prior offense, and a class D felony when someone dies.
Missouri’s written driver report applies only to owners and drivers without liability insurance. Under Revised Statutes of Missouri (RSMo) section 303.040, an uninsured owner or driver in a crash on a street, highway, or parking lot open to the public that kills or injures anyone, or does more than $500 of damage to any one person’s property, must report it in writing to the Director of Revenue within 30 days. The report is Form 1140, the Motor Vehicle Accident Report, mailed to the Driver License Bureau, P.O. Box 200, Jefferson City, MO 65105-0200, or faxed to (573) 526-7365.
Missouri Insurance Rules After a Crash
Missouri law requires liability insurance of at least $25,000 for injury or death to one person, $50,000 for two or more people and $25,000 for property damage under RSMo sections 303.190 and 303.030.
Every auto liability policy written for a Missouri vehicle must also include uninsured motorist coverage at the same $25,000 and $50,000 bodily injury limits under section 379.203, and that statute does not require underinsured motorist coverage. A first conviction for driving uninsured is a class D misdemeanor and can bring a license suspension or four points under section 303.025.
Missouri is not a no-fault state, and state law does not require personal injury protection (PIP). Injury and damage claims go against the driver who caused the crash, usually through that driver’s liability insurer. Since the Missouri Supreme Court’s 1983 decision in Gustafson v. Benda, a person who was partly at fault can still recover, with the award reduced in proportion to their own share of the fault.
Missouri Traffic Deaths by the Numbers
| Measure | Figure | Year | Source |
| Traffic deaths in the first half of the year | 402, down 24 from the first half of 2025 (preliminary) | 2026 | MoDOT |
| People killed in traffic crashes | 909, down 46 (preliminary) | 2025 | MoDOT |
| People killed in traffic crashes | 955 | 2024 | MoDOT |
| Pedestrians killed | 139 (preliminary) | 2025 | MoDOT |
| Motorcyclists killed | 131 (preliminary) | 2025 | MoDOT |
| Deaths in distracted driving crashes | 96 (preliminary) | 2025 | MoDOT |
Pedestrian and motorcyclist deaths both fell in 2025, while bicyclist deaths rose to 25 from 18 the year before. Missouri’s statewide highway safety plan, Show-Me Zero, works through education, enforcement, engineering, and emergency response toward zero traffic deaths.
Missouri Crash Guides by City and County
At Local Accident Reports, we cover crashes across the country, going county by county and then city by city. From car crashes and motorcycle wrecks to commercial and residential fires, we report on accidents happening in communities all across the nation.
Missouri is no exception. With 114 counties and 1 independent city, accidents happen every day, and we work to keep people informed about when and where they occur. At the same time, we want to give drivers and commuters a better understanding of the places they travel through. That includes highlighting major roads, dangerous intersections, and other local details that can help people know what to expect when they get behind the wheel.
Here, you can find the latest accident reports from across Missouri’s counties and communities, along with helpful guides to some of the state’s most important cities.
County accident news: Jackson County · Greene County · St. Louis County · Jefferson County · St. Charles County · Boone County · Jasper County · Franklin County
Intersection and road-stretch lists for the state are on our Missouri dangerous intersections page.
Help After a Crash
- Local Accident Reports. After a crash, we can connect you with local help, from doctors and body shops to injury attorneys. Contact our team.
- Missouri Crime Victims’ Compensation The Department of Public Safety program pays up to $25,000 toward medical bills, lost wages, counseling, and funeral costs when no other source covers them. Victims of drunk drivers, vehicular manslaughter, and hit-and-run crashes qualify, and claims must be filed within two years. You can call (573) 526-6006.
- MADD Missouri Free support for people hurt by drunk or drugged drivers and for the families of those killed. 24-hour help line: 877-MADD-HELP (877-623-3435).
- 911. Call or text 911 after an accident for support.
- Trauma centers. Missouri’s nine Level I trauma centers are in St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield, and Columbia, per the state health department’s Level I trauma center list.
Missouri Crash Questions
How do I get a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report?
Order it through the Patrol’s online Public Records Center at mshp.govqa.us, or send a request to the Patrol Records Division by email, fax, or mail. Wait 10 days after the crash investigation before asking. A basic report costs $6, and mailed requests go to P.O. Box 568, Jefferson City, MO 65102, with a check or money order.
Do Missouri drivers have to file their own crash report?
Only drivers or owners without liability insurance. Under RSMo 303.040, an uninsured driver in a crash that kills or injures anyone, or does over $500 of damage to one person’s property, must report it in writing to the Director of Revenue within 30 days, using Form 1140. Every driver involved must stop and exchange information.
Is Missouri a no-fault state?
No. Missouri requires liability coverage of $25,000 per person, $50,000 per crash, and $25,000 for property damage, plus uninsured motorist coverage, and does not require personal injury protection. The at-fault driver’s insurer pays the other side’s losses, and someone partly to blame can still recover an amount reduced by their share of fault.
How long do I have to file a car accident claim in Missouri?
Five years for injury and property damage claims under RSMo section 516.120 and three years for wrongful death claims under section 537.100. When a defect in a city street, sidewalk, bridge, or thoroughfare caused the injury, written notice must reach the mayor within 90 days of the crash under section’s 82.210, 77.600, or 79.480, depending on the city’s class.
Recent Missouri Crash Coverage
Collision with Injuries Sends Pickup Down Embankment at US-60 in Neosho, MO
Fatal Pedestrian Crash on Manchester Rd in Ballwin, MO
Three Killed In Hydroplaning Crash on Hwy 63 In Vienna, MO
Motorcycle Crash Shuts Down I-70 in Columbia, MO
Woman Seriously Hurt in Two-Vehicle Crash at US-50 and Lookout Trail in Jefferson City, MO
The full archive is at Missouri accident news, and recent accident alerts track new crashes across the country as they are reported.
Local Accident Reports compiles this information from public agency sources and published reports for general reference. It is not legal advice and is not an official police record. Fees, forms and deadlines change, so confirm with the agency before you send a request. Last updated October 2026.