Victim of a Hit-and-Run in Memphis?

Even though the driver left, call 911. You need both emergency medical attention and a police response to document the incident. The responding Memphis Police Department officer will create a crash report — essential evidence even if the driver hasn't been identified yet.

Give the officer every detail you can remember about the vehicle: make, model, color, approximate year, any damage, partial license plate numbers, direction of travel, and any distinguishing features. Even partial information can lead to identification.

If you are physically able, look around immediately for potential evidence. Are there security cameras on nearby businesses? Traffic cameras at the intersection? Other drivers or pedestrians who may have witnessed the incident? Dashboard cameras in nearby vehicles?

Get witness names and phone numbers. Ask if anyone got a photo or video of the fleeing vehicle. Note the exact time and location of the incident.

This window is critical — surveillance footage is often overwritten within days, and witnesses become harder to locate as time passes.

Even if your injuries seem manageable, see a doctor within 24 hours. Adrenaline and shock mask pain, and many injuries — concussions, internal bleeding, soft tissue damage — have delayed symptoms. A prompt medical evaluation creates the documented link between the hit-and-run and your injuries.

In Memphis, Regional One Health, Baptist Memorial Hospital, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, and St. Francis Hospital all have emergency departments. Le Bonheur Children's Hospital handles pediatric emergencies. Urgent care clinics throughout Shelby County can treat less severe injuries.

Keep all medical records, bills, and receipts.

If the police didn't respond to the scene, file a report with the Memphis Police Department as soon as possible. You can contact MPD at (901) 545-2677 or visit a district station. Provide every detail you can about the vehicle and the incident.

Ask for the report number and the investigating officer's name and badge number. Follow up regularly — hit-and-run investigations can take time, and your persistence matters.

To obtain a copy of the crash report, contact MPD Central Records at 170 North Main Street, 7th Floor, Suite 7-11, Memphis, TN 38103.

This is the critical step that many hit-and-run victims don't realize: even if the other driver is never found, you may be able to recover compensation through your own auto insurance policy.

Uninsured motorist (UM) coverage applies when the at-fault driver is unidentified or uninsured. In Tennessee, insurance companies must offer UM coverage, but drivers can reject it in writing. Check your policy — if you carry UM coverage, you can file a claim with your own insurer for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other damages, just as if you were filing against the other driver's insurer.

Important: Even though you're filing with your own insurance company, they will still try to minimize the payout. Do not give a recorded statement without legal advice, and do not accept a settlement until you understand the full extent of your injuries.

Leaving the scene of an accident involving injury is a serious crime in Tennessee. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 55-10-101, drivers involved in an accident resulting in injury or death must stop, provide identification, and render aid. Hit-and-run involving injury is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail. If the accident caused death, it's a Class E felony, carrying one to six years in prison.

If the driver is identified and criminal charges are filed, the statute of limitations for your civil personal injury claim may extend from one year to two years under Tenn. Code Ann. § 28-3-104(a)(2). But don't rely on this — treat the one-year deadline as your working deadline.

Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 28-3-104, you have only one year from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. If the driver is identified, you file against them directly. If the driver is never found, you file a UM claim with your own insurer — and some policies have their own deadlines for reporting claims.

Act quickly. The sooner you begin, the better your chances of both identifying the driver and preserving your legal options.

Hit-and-run cases require a special approach: pursuing investigation to identify the driver while simultaneously building a UM claim in case the driver is never found. An experienced attorney can work with police to assist in the investigation, subpoena traffic camera and surveillance footage, file and negotiate your UM claim, and protect you from your own insurance company's tactics to minimize the payout.

Most personal injury attorneys offer free consultations and work on contingency — you pay nothing unless they recover compensation.