What to Do After a Hit-and-Run Accident in Florida?

Written by the Hughes and Barnard Law Firm, PA marketing team and reviewed by Attorney Howard Hughes to ensure quality and accuracy.

Get to safety, call 911, and get as much information as you can about the vehicle that left — its color, make, direction of travel, and any part of the plate you caught — before it fades from memory. Then get medical attention, even if you feel fine, and let a police officer document the scene. What you do in the next few minutes shapes both your recovery and your ability to get paid later, especially since the driver responsible won’t be there to hold accountable directly.

Immediately After

  1. Check for injuries and call 911. Medical attention comes first, and a 911 call also gets law enforcement to the scene to start an official report.
  2. Write down everything you remember about the other vehicle. Color, make and model, approximate plate, direction of travel, any distinguishing damage. This fades fast, so do it before you do anything else.
  3. Look for witnesses. A doorbell camera across the street or a driver two cars back may have seen more than you did in the moment of impact.
  4. Photograph the scene. Your vehicle’s damage, the road, any debris left behind (a piece of a bumper or a side mirror can sometimes be matched to a specific vehicle).

In the Following Days

  • File the police report if you haven't already, and get a copy of it once available.
  • See a doctor, both for your health and because Florida requires PIP-covered treatment to start within 14 days of the accident to preserve those benefits.
  • Notify your own insurance company, since your uninsured motorist and PIP coverage are what typically pay your claim when the at-fault driver can't be identified or didn't carry insurance.
  • Avoid guessing at fault or details you're not sure of if an insurance adjuster calls before you've had a chance to review the police report.

Why Reporting Matters Even When the Driver Got Away

It might feel pointless to report a crash when the other driver is already gone, but the report does real work for your claim: it’s the official record your own insurer will look at when deciding whether to pay under your uninsured motorist or PIP coverage, and it’s what law enforcement uses if the driver is later identified through a tip, a traffic camera, or a body-shop repair record. Leaving the scene is also, separately, a crime under Florida law (see “Is a Hit-and-Run a Felony in Florida?” once both posts are published), and prosecutors do sometimes identify fleeing drivers well after the fact.

Getting Paid When the At-Fault Driver Is Gone

Because you can’t pursue the other driver’s insurance if they’re never identified, uninsured motorist coverage usually becomes the practical path to compensation, alongside your own PIP benefits for initial medical costs. UM coverage is optional in Florida, though insurers are required to offer it and to obtain a signed written rejection if you decline, so it’s worth confirming what your policy actually includes before assuming you have no recourse. Our Palm Beach County uninsured motorist attorneys, along with our Port St. Lucie and Jupiter car accident lawyers, handle these claims regularly and know how to build them even without a named defendant to pursue.

What to Do After a Hit-and-Run Accident in Florida 2

What NOT to Do After a Hit-and-Run

A few instinctive reactions can actually hurt your claim or your safety:

  • Don't chase the fleeing vehicle. It rarely results in catching them and puts you at further risk.
  • Don't skip medical care because you feel okay. Adrenaline masks pain, and a gap in treatment is exactly what an insurer will point to later.
  • Don't speculate about fault or the other driver's identity on social media. Anything posted publicly can be reviewed later, and guesses stated as fact can complicate your own claim.
  • Don't assume nothing can be done because the driver got away. As covered above, a real percentage of these drivers are eventually identified.

How Long Do Hit-and-Run Investigations Usually Take

There’s no set timeline. Some cases resolve within days, when a witness has a clear plate number or a nearby camera caught the vehicle. Others remain open for months, and some are never solved. That uncertainty is exactly why pursuing your own uninsured motorist and PIP coverage promptly matters regardless of how the criminal investigation turns out; your compensation doesn’t have to wait on a resolution that might never come.

Filing an Uninsured Motorist Claim: What to Expect

Once you notify your insurer, they’ll typically request the police report, your medical records, and documentation of your damages, much like a claim against another driver’s insurer. The difference is that you’re now negotiating with your own insurance company, which is required to act in good faith but doesn’t always make that easy. If your insurer disputes the value of the claim or denies it outright, Florida law generally allows the dispute to move to arbitration or litigation against your own policy, a step that happens more often than most people expect.

If the Hit-and-Run Happened While You Were Walking or Cycling

Pedestrians and cyclists face a version of this scenario with even higher stakes, since injuries tend to be more severe and there’s often no vehicle of your own to provide a starting point for insurance coverage. Florida’s PIP system generally only applies to occupants of the insured vehicle, so a pedestrian or cyclist hit by a fleeing driver typically needs to rely on their own auto policy’s uninsured motorist coverage, if they have one, or pursue the claim through other available coverage. This is a scenario worth discussing with an attorney early, since the usual assumptions about PIP don’t apply the same way.

FAQ

Should I still call the police if the other driver is already gone?

Yes. The police report is often the foundation of your uninsured motorist or PIP claim, even with no driver identified.

Write down everything else you can — color, make, model, direction, any distinguishing damage. Witnesses and nearby cameras sometimes fill in the rest.

Typically your own uninsured motorist coverage, if you carry it, along with your PIP benefits. UM is optional in Florida but insurers must offer it, so it’s worth checking your policy or your written rejection form.

Report it as soon as possible. Delays can make it harder for law enforcement to identify the driver and can complicate your own insurance claim.

That claim is a central issue in many hit-and-run prosecutions, but it doesn’t affect your ability to pursue compensation for your own injuries through your own coverage.

Generally yes, though reporting promptly strengthens your claim considerably and avoids questions about why there was a delay.

You can dispute it, and in many cases that dispute proceeds much like a lawsuit, just against your own insurance company instead of the other driver’s.

It shouldn’t, since the accident wasn’t your fault, though it’s worth confirming directly with your carrier how the claim was coded.

Your own auto insurance policy’s uninsured motorist coverage may still apply even though you weren’t driving, depending on how your policy is written, which is worth confirming quickly.

It’s worth trying, but footage is often overwritten within days, so asking law enforcement to request it as part of their investigation is usually faster and more reliable than doing it yourself.

Recent Posts