One-page field checklist. Print on Letter (or Save as PDF) and keep a copy on the clipboard in every cab.

The Truckers Domain

CMV Accident Field Checklist

The First Hour — Work Top to Bottom
Date / time 
Driver 
Unit / trailer # 
Location / mile marker 
Carrier MC / DOT # 
Police report # 

Secure & protect life 0–5 min

  • Stop. Stay calm. Do not move the truck unless it is in a live-traffic hazard.
  • Hazard flashers on. Set parking brake. Engine off if fuel/fire risk.
  • Check yourself, then occupants of all vehicles. Do not move the seriously injured.
  • Call 911 for any injury, fatality, fluid/cargo spill, or blocked lane.
  • Warning devices within 10 min (49 CFR 392.22): triangles at 10 ft, 100 ft, 100 ft toward traffic. Hills/curves with view obstructed: 100 / 200 / 300 ft.

Hold the scene 5–15 min

  • Leave vehicles where they came to rest until photographed, unless police direct otherwise or life/traffic requires the move.
  • Note exact time, weather, road surface, light, and visibility now — it changes fast.
  • Do not throw away anything: debris, broken parts, and load tie-downs are evidence.
  • Keep your ELD/telematics running. Do not edit logs.

The 5 photos a reconstruction needs

  1. Wide scene from each direction of travel: road, signs, signals, skid marks.
  2. Every vehicle's final resting position before anything moves — plus all plates.
  3. Point of impact and damage on each vehicle: one close, one mid-range.
  4. Road + conditions: traffic-control devices, sightline blockers, weather, lighting.
  5. Skid/debris/fluid trail with a shoe or cone in frame for scale; the other driver's license & insurance card; any DOT/MC numbers on their unit.

Exchange & witnesses 15–30 min

  • Other driver: name, license #, plate, insurer + policy #, carrier & DOT #.
  • Get the responding officer's name, badge #, agency, and report number.
  • Capture witnesses before they leave — passers-by do not wait.
Witness 1 — name / phone / saw what Witness 2 — name / phone / saw what

Driver statement discipline 30–45 min

Do

State only what you saw and did. Give facts to police. Be cooperative and brief. Write your own private notes while fresh.

Do not

Admit fault, apologize, or guess speeds/distances. Sign anything except the police report. Discuss fault or give a recorded statement to the other party's insurer.

Post-accident DOT test? decide now

  • Always test the surviving driver if the accident involved a fatality.
  • Test if the driver got a citation for a moving violation and someone was injured and treated away from the scene.
  • Test if the driver got a citation and any vehicle was towed from the scene (disabling damage).
  • Windows (49 CFR 382.303): alcohol ≤ 8 hr (document why if not ≤ 2 hr); controlled substances ≤ 32 hr. If in doubt, test — a missed required test is a violation.

Call sequence 45–60 min

  • 1. Dispatch / safety — report, get instructions, arrange tow & load. Ph: ____________
  • 2. Insurance — first notice of loss; claim #, give facts only. Ph: ____________
  • 3. Attorney — if injury, fatality, citation, or cargo/hazmat. Ph: ____________
  • Hazmat release or reportable spill: notify per emergency response plan / CHEMTREC.
  • Preserve the accident in the carrier's accident register, 3 yr (49 CFR 390.15).
  • Send all photos and your private notes to dispatch the same day. Keep originals.

Before you leave the scene

  • Police report number recorded above.
  • All 5 photo sets taken and backed up off the phone.
  • Other driver + witness info captured and legible.
  • Dispatch, insurer (and attorney if triggered) notified.
  • Post-accident testing decision made and acted on.