After A Crash
S.C. Code 56-5-1210 and S.C. Code 56-5-1230 — stop, stay, exchange, help, and a report within fifteen days
After a crash, the sections this page reads say, in short:
- A driver in a crash that injures or kills someone stops immediately at the scene or as close as possible, and stays until the duty to give information and render aid is met.
- The driver may leave temporarily to report the crash to the authorities.
- A driver in a crash damaging an attended vehicle stops and stays on the same terms.
- The driver gives a name, an address and the registration number of the vehicle, and shows a driver's license on request.
- The driver gives reasonable assistance to anyone injured, including arranging their carriage to a doctor or hospital where treatment is apparently necessary or the person asks.
- A driver who hits an unattended vehicle stops and finds the owner, or leaves a written note in a conspicuous place with names, addresses and what happened.
Leaving where someone is hurt. Failing to stop or comply where someone is injured is a misdemeanor carrying thirty days to one year or a fine of $100 to $5,000, or both. Where great bodily injury results it is a felony carrying thirty days to ten years and a fine of $5,000 to $10,000; where death results, a felony carrying one to twenty five years and a fine of $10,000 to $25,000.
A driver in a crash that injures or kills anyone gives notice immediately, by the quickest means, to the local police within a municipality, and otherwise to the sheriff or the nearest Highway Patrol office. Where a crash with an injury, a death, or apparent damage of $1,000 or more was not investigated by an officer, the operator or owner sends a written report with verification of liability insurance to the Department of Motor Vehicles within fifteen days.
Failing to send that report verified as to insurance is prima facie evidence the vehicle was uninsured. A driver whose damaged vehicle is blocking traffic makes every reasonable effort to move it off the roadway if it can be driven safely, and moving it is not by itself a sign of fault. Who was at fault and the insurance claim are not on this page. A particular crash is a question for a licensed South Carolina attorney.
Sources for this section (6)
- S.C. Code 56-5-1210 — Duties of drivers involved in accident resulting in death or personal injury
- S.C. Code 56-5-1220 — Duties of driver involved in accident resulting in damage to attended vehicles
- S.C. Code 56-5-1230 — Duty to give information and render aid
- S.C. Code 56-5-1270 — Operators, owners, and law enforcement officers shall make written reports of certain accidents
- S.C. Code 56-5-1240 — Duties of driver involved in accident involving unattended vehicle
- S.C. Code 56-5-1260 — Immediate report of accidents resulting in personal injury or death
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed South Carolina attorney.