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Within 10 days of the collision no matter how much damage occurred.
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California law requires that you report accidents where someone was injured or where there is property damage in excess of a certain amount. If you have a particular concern (such as, for example, whether your accident will be reported to your employer or something), you should ask about that instead of making the question so general.
It depends on the laws of your state. Most(all?) states DO require you to report any accident which causes ANY physical injury whatsoever - or one that exceeds a certain dollar amount in damage. Check the laws of your state.
To satisfy the DMV regulations, either or both the drivers involved must report the collision. Insofar as your insurance policy is concerned - you must read your pplicy.
If you are involved in a collision where a person is injured or killed, or where $750 or more of property damage has occurred regardless who is at fault and whether or not a police report was made, you must file an SR-1 report with the DMV within ten days of the collision.Another View: There is no 'standard' answer to this question. Every US state sets its own rules and regulations.
It depends on what you define as "minor." I believe every state has a MINIMUM damage amount beyond which you MUST report the collision. Of course, if the accident resulted in personal injury NO MATTER HOW SLIGHT, it MUST be reported regardless of the damage amount. Some states have very low dollar threshhold set, so be certain to check your state's laws on this matter.
Make a police report. The level of punishment will depend on the amount of damage.
results in death, injury, or more than $1,000 damage to property
Depends on whether it is YOUR carrier or the carrier of another at-fault driver. Auto policies state, in some form, under Collision and Comprehensive (sometimes now termed "Other than Collision"), that you must report the accident to them in a reasonable amount of time: the language can vary and can state "as soon as possible", "within a reasonable time period", "within 30 days", etc. They can and sometimes DO deny coverage if you've not complied with this. The reason they will deny is because a damaged car is more likely to sustain additional damage: rust, leakage, loose parts falling off, sometimes more prone to subsequent accidents (dependent on the type and location of damage). If you are NOT at fault, but fail to report your damages promptly, or make your car available for inspection promptly etc, the insurance CAN deny your claim. They are not likely to if there is truly damage they are responsible for, but they can, and are within their legal rights to, reduce the amount of your claim if failure to repair your damage in a reasonable amount of time (called "mitigating" your damages) increases the amount needed to restore you to pre-loss condition.
sample of marine damage report