District of Columbia Hit and Run Laws: Penalties & Guide

The District of Columbia's hit and run rule is D.C. Code 50-2201.05c, titled "Leaving after colliding," which replaced the older D.C. Code 50-2201.05. It requires any driver who knows or should know their vehicle was in a collision to immediately stop, and it scales penalties by harm: leaving after damaging property or injuring an animal carries up to 30 days in jail, while leaving after a collision that injures a person carries up to 180 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Your Legal Duty After a Collision in DC

A collision by itself is not a crime in the District of Columbia. The offense, leaving after colliding, occurs when a driver fails to do what the law requires after a crash. Those duties are set out in D.C. Code 50-2201.05c.

The statute applies to any person who operates or is in physical control of a vehicle and who knows, or has reason to believe, that the vehicle has been in a collision. That person must immediately stop and then act based on what was hit:

• Where another person is injured, the driver must call or cause someone to call 911 or for emergency help if needed, remain on the scene until law enforcement arrives, and provide identifying information to law enforcement and to the injured person.
• Where someone else's real or personal property is damaged, or a domestic animal is injured, the driver must provide identifying information to the owner or operator. If that person is not present, the driver must provide, or cause someone to provide, identifying information and the location of the collision to law enforcement or 911.
• Where the collision leaves property or a wild or domestic animal posing a risk to others, the driver must call 911 and report identifying information, the location, and the nature of the risk.

For an unattended vehicle or property where the owner is absent, the statute's notify-law-enforcement-or-911 path is DC's version of the leave-information rule. The duty applies even when the other vehicle is unattended.

How DC Penalties Scale With Harm

D.C. Code 50-2201.05c(d) sets two penalty tracks based on whether a person was injured. Each track has a first-offense level and a higher repeat-offense level. The dollar fines are drawn from the District's general criminal fine schedule in D.C. Code 22-3571.01.

Property Damage or Injury to an Animal

Leaving after a collision that damages property or injures a domestic animal, with no person hurt (including hitting an unattended vehicle), is punishable by:

• First offense: up to 30 days in jail, a fine of up to $250, or both
• Repeat offense: up to 90 days in jail, a fine of up to $500, or both

Injury to a Person

Leaving after a collision in which another person is injured is the more serious offense, punishable by:

• First offense: up to 180 days in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both
• Repeat offense: up to 1 year in jail, a fine of up to $2,500, or both

The injury track applies to any injury to a person, minor or severe. D.C. Code 50-2201.05c does not contain a separate, higher penalty tier for serious bodily injury or death. A collision that kills someone can still expose a driver to other, more serious charges, such as negligent or involuntary homicide, under separate parts of DC law.

Is It a Felony?

No. In the District, the line between a misdemeanor and a felony is whether the maximum authorized imprisonment exceeds one year. Every tier of D.C. Code 50-2201.05c caps at 30 days, 90 days, 180 days, or one year, so every leaving-after-colliding offense is a misdemeanor, including the most serious repeat-injury offense.

Driver's License Consequences

The criminal statute does not itself revoke a license, but the DC DMV does so through its driver point system. Leaving the scene is a major moving violation, and the points are steep:

• Leaving a collision in which no personal injury occurs adds 8 points to a driver's record.
• Leaving a collision in which personal injury occurs (hit and run) adds 12 points and triggers automatic license revocation.

Under DMV thresholds, accumulating 10 to 11 points leads to a 90-day suspension, and 12 or more points leads to revocation for at least six months. Because an injury hit and run is itself a 12-point violation, it can cause automatic revocation on its own. After an arrest for a major moving violation, the DMV issues an Order of Proposed Revocation, and the driver must request a show-cause hearing within 10 days (15 days for non-residents).

What Counts as Leaving the Scene

The duty in D.C. Code 50-2201.05c turns on the driver's knowledge. It applies to a driver who knows, or has reason to believe, that their vehicle has been in a collision. A driver who genuinely had no reason to know a collision occurred may have a defense.

The statute also limits the available excuses. It is an affirmative defense, which the driver must prove, that they failed to stop or remain because of a reasonable belief that their own safety or someone else's was at risk, but only if they called 911 or notified law enforcement as soon as it was safe, gave identifying information and a description of the collision, and followed the operator's or officer's instructions. The statute makes clear it is not a defense that the driver was intoxicated, impaired, distracted, or not at fault for the collision.

What to Do If You Are the Victim of a Hit and Run

If another driver hits you and flees, the steps you take help protect both your safety and a future claim.

• Call 911 and report the collision. A police report documents the hit and run and starts an investigation that may identify the driver.
• Note everything you can about the fleeing vehicle: make, model, color, and any part of the plate, plus the direction it went.
• Photograph the scene and collect the contact information of any witnesses. Nearby dashcam or surveillance footage can help.
• Notify your own insurer promptly.

Uninsured motorist (UM) coverage is important because a fleeing driver is often never identified. UM coverage is required on every DC auto policy under D.C. Code 31-2406, with minimum limits of $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury plus $5,000 in UM property damage. The statute defines an uninsured motor vehicle to include one whose owner or operator cannot be identified, so a phantom hit and run driver is covered. The District also runs a separate Uninsured Motorist Fund through the Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking for victims of uninsured or unidentified drivers.

DC is fundamentally an at-fault (tort) jurisdiction with an optional add-on PIP system, so a victim generally keeps the right to sue the at-fault driver. If the fleeing driver is identified, the victim can bring a civil claim for medical bills, lost wages, vehicle damage, and pain and suffering. A personal injury claim in DC generally must be filed within three years of the crash under D.C. Code 12-301(a)(8), and a wrongful death claim within two years of the death under D.C. Code 16-2702. If the District itself is a defendant, written notice to the Mayor is required within six months under D.C. Code 12-309.

What to Do If You Are Accused of a Hit and Run

If you are accused of leaving after colliding, what you do next can affect the outcome.

• If you realize you left a scene, contact law enforcement promptly and provide the identifying information the statute requires.
• Do not give a statement about fault or details, especially when a person was injured, before speaking with a lawyer.
• Preserve evidence supporting your account, such as your route, your vehicle's condition, and any reason you did not know a collision occurred.

The statute's own affirmative-safety defense is narrow and requires prompt reporting. A lack of knowledge that a collision occurred may also be a defense. This article is general legal information, not legal advice, and an attorney can evaluate how DC law applies to a specific case.