How to get an Iowa crash report
Copies come from Iowa Department of Transportation, Bureau of Enforcement, Audits, & Records (Motor Vehicle Division). Request one at iowadot.gov. Cost: $4 for a copy of the officer's report (kept even if no report exists); $4 for a limited-information accident report; $5.50 per record for driver records.
Checked against the official pages on October 2, 2026
The statewide copy
| Who has it | Iowa Department of Transportation, Bureau of Enforcement, Audits, & Records (Motor Vehicle Division) |
|---|---|
| Where to request it | iowadot.gov |
| Covers | Officer's reports forwarded to the DOT by Iowa law enforcement (Iowa Code 321.266(3)) and the driver's own accident reports (kept 10 years) |
| Cost | $4 for a copy of the officer's report (kept even if no report exists); $4 for a limited-information accident report; $5.50 per record for driver records |
| What you need | Complete and sign the Request for Copy of Investigating Officer's Report of an Accident form; mail it with $4 |
| Who can get a copy | Officer's report: only persons involved in the accident, their attorney, insurance companies or insurance agents (state law). Your own driver's report: the person who filed it, using the Privacy Act Agreement form. |
| By mail | Mail the form and $4 to Iowa Department of Transportation, Bureau of Enforcement, Audits, & Records, P.O. Box 9204, Des Moines, IA 50306-9204. |
Reports taken by city police or a sheriff
Police and sheriff reports can also be requested from the investigating agency; Iowa law makes officers send every reportable accident report to the DOT within 24 hours of finishing the investigation (Iowa Code 321.266(3)).
The form: 433014 (driver's Iowa Accident Report is 433002)
Officers in Iowa write crash reports on the Investigating Officer's Report of Motor Vehicle Accident (433014 (driver's Iowa Accident Report is 433002)). Most boxes on it hold numeric codes for things like contributing factors, injuries and road conditions. The state publishes the key to those codes:
Your own report to the state
Yes, in some cases: injury or death of any person, or total property damage of $1,500 or more, unless a law enforcement agency investigated the accident. Deadline: 72 hours after the accident. Form Iowa Accident Report (433002), filed with Iowa Department of Transportation (P.O. Box 9204, Des Moines, IA 50306-9204). (Iowa Code 321.266(2))
When you must call the police
Immediately, if anyone is injured or killed. For death, injury or total damage of $1,500 or more, the DOT says contact the nearest law enforcement agency to have the accident investigated. (Iowa Code 321.266(1))
After you have the report
Iowa gives you two years to file a personal injury lawsuit (Iowa Code § 614.1(2)). Every Iowa deadline and fault rule.
Iowa is an at-fault state: the driver who caused the crash, through their liability insurance, pays for the injuries and damage.
1,770 people died in crashes in Iowa from 2020 to 2024 (NHTSA FARS). See the record for your county.
Check your deadline and a rough claim range
A filing date and a rough value range for Iowa. Both take under a minute.
Questions
How much does an Iowa crash report cost?
$4 for a copy of the officer's report (kept even if no report exists); $4 for a limited-information accident report; $5.50 per record for driver records, from Iowa Department of Transportation, Bureau of Enforcement, Audits, & Records (Motor Vehicle Division). Reports taken by a city police department or sheriff may be priced differently by that agency.
Are Iowa crash reports public?
Officer's report: only persons involved in the accident, their attorney, insurance companies or insurance agents (state law). Your own driver's report: the person who filed it, using the Privacy Act Agreement form.
Do I have to file my own crash report in Iowa?
Yes, in some cases: injury or death of any person, or total property damage of $1,500 or more, unless a law enforcement agency investigated the accident. Deadline: 72 hours after the accident. Form Iowa Accident Report (433002), filed with Iowa Department of Transportation (P.O. Box 9204, Des Moines, IA 50306-9204).
Sources
- Statewide crash reports: iowadot.gov/drivers-licenses-ids/other-services/request-driving-records-accident
Iowa DOT: "A copy of the officer's report of an accident costs $4. State law allows these reports to be given only to persons involved in the accident, their attorney, insurance companies or insurance agents. To obtain a copy of the report: Complete the Request for Copy of Investigating Officer's Report of an Accident Form Print and sign the form. Mail the completed form and $4 to the address at the bottom of this page. Please note: The $4 processing fee will be retained even if no crash report exists for the information submitted." "A $4 fee is required to obtain a limited information acciden…
- Local police and sheriff reports: www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/321.266.pdf
- 433014 (driver's Iowa Accident Report is 433002) codes: ia.iowadot.gov/forms/433014.pdf
- Driver report duty (Iowa Code 321.266(2)): www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/321.266.pdf
"The driver of a vehicle involved in an accident resulting in injury to or death of any person, or total property damage to an apparent extent of one thousand five hundred dollars or more shall, within seventy-two hours after the accident, forward a written report of the accident to the department. However, such report is not required when the accident is investigated by a law enforcement agency." DOT: "Failure to return an accident report form within 72 hours from the time of the accident may result in suspension of your driving privileges."
- When to call police (Iowa Code 321.266(1)): www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/321.266.pdf
"The driver of a vehicle involved in an accident resulting in injury to or death of any person shall immediately by the quickest means of communication give notice of such accident to the sheriff of the county in which said accident occurred, or the nearest office of the state patrol, or to any other peace officer as near as practicable to the place where the accident occurred." DOT: "The driver involved in an accident occurring anywhere within the State of Iowa causing death, personal injury, or total property damage of $1,500 or more should contact the nearest law enforcement agency to have …
Read October 2, 2026. Laws and fees change; the linked page is the authority.