How to Get Your Police Report in Minneapolis-St. Paul After an Accident

The first step is figuring out which law enforcement agency investigated your accident. This determines where you request your report, how much it costs, and how long it takes. Check the exchange of information card you received at the scene — it lists the investigating agency and the report number. If you do not have the card, think about where the accident happened.

Minneapolis Police Department handles crashes within Minneapolis city limits. St. Paul Police Department handles crashes within St. Paul city limits. Minnesota State Patrol typically handles crashes on interstate highways and state routes — I-94, I-35W, I-35E, I-494, I-694, MN-55, MN-62, MN-100, and MN-36. Suburban police departments handle crashes within their city boundaries — including Bloomington, Edina, Plymouth, Brooklyn Park, Maple Grove, Roseville, Maplewood, and Woodbury.

If you are unsure which agency responded, call Minneapolis non-emergency dispatch at (612) 348-2345 or St. Paul non-emergency at (651) 291-1111. They can look up the incident by date and location and tell you which agency handled it.

Minneapolis Police crash reports are free. The fastest way to request your report is online through the OpenCity Portal at minneapolis.service-now.com/opencityportal. Use the General Data Request form. You will need your Case Control Number (CCN), the date of the accident, the location of the accident, your name, and your address. You must be an authorized requestor — a person involved in the accident, their attorney or insurer, a representative or surviving spouse, or a person injured or who lost money because of the accident.

You can also request in person or by mail at the Minneapolis Police Records Information Unit, 505 Fourth Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55415. Hours: Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Phone hours are 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Phone: (612) 673-2961. Email: Police-RecordsInformationUnit@minneapolismn.gov. You can also reach the city's 311 line at (612) 673-3000.

Minneapolis reports typically take 5 to 10 business days after the request is submitted. If your report is not available yet, the Records Unit will notify you when it is ready. Call (612) 673-2961 to check on the status of your request.

St. Paul Police crash reports are available online through the Data Practices Center at saintpaulmn.govqa.us. You will need to create an account with your email address and upload a photo ID (driver's license or state ID). Online requests under 100 pages are free. For requests of 100 or more pages, fees apply.

In-person requests are available at the St. Paul Police Records Unit, 367 Grove Street, 1st Floor Customer Service window, St. Paul, MN 55101. Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Phone: (651) 266-5700. In-person reports cost $0.25 per page (up to 99 pages). Payment accepted by mail or in person only. Bring a photo ID.

Processing times depend on your relationship to the crash. If you are the data subject (a person named in the report), St. Paul must respond within 10 business days under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act (Minn. Stat. Ch. 13). If you are not the data subject, the response time is up to 30 business days.

If your accident happened on an interstate highway or state route in the Twin Cities area — I-94, I-35W, I-35E, I-494, I-694, or a state highway where the Minnesota State Patrol responded — your crash report comes from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS), Driver and Vehicle Services.

Reports cost $5 each, payable by check or money order to 'Driver and Vehicle Services.' You must complete the Crash Record Request Form (PS2503), which is available at the DPS website. The form requires the date of the crash, the county where it occurred, and the driver's last name. The form must be signed by an authorized requestor — a person involved in the crash who appears on the report, their attorney, or their insurer. For fatal crashes, the next of kin or surviving spouse may request the report with a death certificate or obituary.

In-person requests: DVS Downtown St. Paul Exam Station, 445 Minnesota Street, St. Paul, MN 55101 (Town Square Building, street level). Reports are also available at any full-service deputy registrar office for individuals involved in the crash. By mail: Driver and Vehicle Services, Attn: Records Unit, 445 Minnesota Street, Suite 161, St. Paul, MN 55101-5161. Phone: (651) 296-2940. State Patrol crash reports become available approximately 3 weeks after the incident — troopers need 3 to 5 business days to file their initial reports.

If your accident happened in a Twin Cities suburb, the local police department handles the crash report. Each agency has its own process and fees. Here are some of the largest suburban departments.

Bloomington Police: (952) 563-8600. Edina Police: (952) 826-1600. Plymouth Police: (763) 509-5160. Brooklyn Park Police: (763) 493-8222. Maple Grove Police: (763) 494-6100. Roseville Police: (651) 792-7008. Maplewood Police: (651) 249-2600. Woodbury Public Safety: (651) 739-4141. Each department may use different online portals — some use LexisNexis BuyCrash, others have their own request forms. Contact the investigating agency directly for their specific process.

Some suburban departments upload crash reports to LexisNexis BuyCrash at buycrash.lexisnexisrisk.com, but not all Minnesota agencies use this system. It is worth checking BuyCrash, but do not rely on it as the only option — contact the department directly if your report is not available there.

Regardless of which agency has your report, gather as much of the following information as possible before submitting your request: the Case Control Number (CCN) or report number (from the exchange card you received at the scene), the date of the accident, the location of the accident (intersection or nearest address), your name and address as the requester, and your driver's license number or other photo ID.

The CCN or report number is the most efficient way to locate your report. If you do not have it, the agency can usually find your report using the crash date combined with the crash location and driver names. For in-person requests at any agency, bring a valid photo ID.

Under Minnesota's Government Data Practices Act (Minn. Stat. § 13.82), crash response data is classified as public government data. Public elements include: the date, time, and place of the crash; the agencies involved; the names and addresses of witnesses and victims; dates of birth; whether seat belts were worn; and the alcohol concentration of each driver. Some narrative details beyond these categories may be more restricted.

Your crash report is one of the most powerful pieces of evidence in a personal injury claim. It is written by a trained law enforcement officer who arrived at the scene, assessed the physical evidence, spoke to drivers and witnesses, and formed an independent opinion about what happened. Insurance adjusters review the crash report before anything else when evaluating a claim.

The report typically includes: a diagram of the accident scene showing vehicle positions, the direction of travel for each vehicle, the officer's narrative describing how the accident occurred, a fault assessment or contributing factors for each driver, contact information for all parties and witnesses, weather and road conditions at the time, whether citations were issued, and whether any driver appeared impaired.

If the report contains errors — your name is misspelled, the diagram is wrong, or the fault assessment does not match what happened — contact the investigating agency to request a correction or supplement. Do this as soon as you notice the error. Your attorney can also address report inaccuracies during the claims process. Under Minnesota law, you have 6 years from the date of injury to file a personal injury lawsuit (Minn. Stat. § 541.05), but getting your crash report early gives you and your attorney more time to build a strong case.

If you have been in an accident in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area and you are working on getting your crash report, get your free Injury Claim Check while you wait. You will answer a few quick questions about your accident and injuries, and we will give you a personalized report that includes Minnesota's filing deadline for your specific claim, whether your case meets the no-fault tort threshold, and whether connecting with a personal injury attorney makes sense for your situation.

Your crash report is a critical piece of the puzzle, but understanding the full picture — fault, no-fault thresholds, insurance coverage, deadlines — matters just as much. Our Injury Claim Check gives you clear, actionable information about what comes next. Free, confidential, and takes less time than waiting on hold with the records unit.