Where this comes from
You can check the original sources
We checked these original sources on August 25, 2026. Each link opens the source so you can read it for yourself.
Original links
Sources and what they explain
- Where it applies
- United States; implemented through state crash systems
- What it helps explain
- Defines common person, vehicle, sequence, roadway and injury fields in state crash reporting.
- Date checked
- Sixth edition public program page; retrieved August 25, 2026
- Where it applies
- United States and state traffic-record systems
- What it helps explain
- Explains the state systems holding crash, driver, vehicle, roadway and injury information.
- Date checked
- Live federal program page; retrieved August 25, 2026
- Where it applies
- United States; HIPAA-covered records
- What it helps explain
- Explains how many patients can inspect and obtain copies of medical and billing records.
- Date checked
- Live federal guidance; retrieved August 25, 2026
Give every vehicle its own line
Use the plate, unit number or a simple label such as Vehicle A. Record owner, driver, occupants, direction, lane, first visible damage, insurer and claim number. Do not use “the truck” or “the blue car” if two vehicles fit the description.
Federal crash-report criteria separate person, vehicle, sequence, roadway and injury data.1 Use the same separation in your own timeline.
Record the impacts in order
For each impact, write:
- What touched what.
- Where each vehicle was just before contact.
- What you saw, heard or felt.
- Which photograph, video, witness or report supports it.
- Whether the order or time is an estimate.
Do not combine three contacts into “a pileup” and lose the sequence.
Preserve each outside record
Save the full report and supplements, dispatch and ambulance numbers, scene images, nearby camera locations, towing records, vehicle inspections and every insurer message. State traffic systems connect these records but do not make them one document.2
Keep the medical timeline separate
Record when symptoms changed after each impact if you can do so accurately. List every care location and request records rather than recreating clinical findings from memory. Federal guidance explains access to many covered medical records.3
A quick reality check
What this page can and cannot tell you
This page cannot decide fault, medical cause, insurance coverage, legal deadlines, case value or whether you have a claim. Those questions depend on the full facts, records, state law and a licensed attorney's review.
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Where this comes from
The crash report, supplements and original scene files preserve the sequence. They may contain errors and do not decide the civil result by themselves.
- 1
Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria
Defines common person, vehicle, sequence, roadway and injury fields in state crash reporting.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration - 2
Traffic records
Explains the state systems holding crash, driver, vehicle, roadway and injury information.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration - 3
Your medical records
Explains how many patients can inspect and obtain copies of medical and billing records.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Last updated
August 25, 2026
Added a step-by-step way to separate each impact, vehicle, driver, witness and insurer.