Check on people first, then get out of the lanes
Turn on your hazard lights, then check yourself and your passengers before anything else. If anyone is hurt, call 911 immediately and do not move an injured person unless there is fire or leaking fuel. Adrenaline hides pain, so ask everyone twice.
On I-880, a stopped car in a live lane is the most dangerous place you can be. If both cars are drivable, move to the right shoulder or take the next exit and stop somewhere flat and visible. Moving a drivable car after a minor crash does not hurt your claim, and it is far safer than standing in traffic to argue about what happened. If your car will not move, stay buckled inside with the hazards on until the CHP or a tow truck arrives, and never stand between two stopped vehicles on the shoulder.
On Mission Blvd, pull into a parking lot or a side street instead of stopping in the lane. The corridor carries steady traffic all day, and a second rear-end collision at a dead stop is a common way a minor crash turns into a serious one.
911 or the Hayward PD non-emergency line?
Call 911 when anyone is injured, a lane is blocked, fluids are leaking, the other driver seems impaired, or someone leaves the scene. On the freeway, 911 routes you to the CHP, which handles I-880. Give the direction of travel and the nearest exit, for example southbound 880 near the A Street exit, so units can find you quickly.
For a minor crash on a Hayward city street with no injuries, call Hayward Police non-emergency dispatch at (510) 293-7000. Officers do not always respond to minor property-damage collisions, so be ready to document the scene yourself. If an officer does come out, get the report number before anyone leaves. It matters later if the other driver's story changes.
Exchange information and photograph everything
Collect from the other driver: full name, phone number, address, driver's license number, license plate, insurance company and policy number, and the vehicle's make and model. If the driver does not own the car, get the owner's name and contact information too. If anyone stopped to help or saw the crash, ask for a name and number on the spot. Witnesses disappear fast.
Photograph the other driver's license and insurance card instead of copying them by hand. Then shoot the scene: wide shots showing both cars and the road, close-ups of every damaged panel, both license plates, skid marks, debris, and the nearest signal or stop sign. Take more photos than feel necessary. Damage that looks minor at the curb often hides bent brackets and crushed absorbers behind the bumper cover.
Stick to facts at the scene. Do not argue fault, and do not accept a cash offer on the spot. Repair costs on modern cars run well past first guesses once panels come off.
The SR-1: California's 10-day reporting rule
California requires a Report of Traffic Accident, DMV form SR-1, within 10 days of a crash if anyone was injured (however minor) or killed, or if property damage exceeds $1,000. That threshold is low. A scraped bumper with a parking sensor behind it can pass $1,000 in parts alone, so assume most visible body damage qualifies.
The SR-1 applies regardless of fault, and it is separate from any police report or insurance claim. Filing one does not admit anything. You can submit it online through the DMV website, or your insurance agent can file it for you, but the legal responsibility stays with you. The DMV can suspend a license over a missed filing, so set a reminder the day of the crash and keep a copy of what you send.
Call your insurer, and remember who picks the shop
Report the claim promptly, even if you believe the other driver was at fault. Give the facts, share your photos, and ask the adjuster to confirm the claim number in writing.
Expect the adjuster to mention a preferred or network shop. Under California Insurance Code section 758.5, an insurer cannot require you to use a specific repair shop, and once you have chosen one, it is not supposed to keep pushing you toward a different one. The network pitch is convenience for the insurer. The choice is yours.
S&R Motors handles collision and body repair with direct billing to State Farm, Geico, Progressive, Allstate, USAA, Farmers, Liberty Mutual, and other major carriers, so choosing your own shop does not mean extra paperwork for you.
If the car will not drive: towing without the storage-fee trap
If your car gets towed from the scene, tell the operator exactly where it should go. A car sitting at a tow yard while you sort out the claim accrues daily storage charges, and those add up quickly. Sending it straight to the shop that will fix it skips that bill entirely.
S&R Motors offers 24/7 towing and storage, so a car can come off I-880 at 2 AM and be in our lot when we open. Call (510) 244-7184 and we will coordinate the pickup.
Get a written estimate and get moving again
Estimates at S&R Motors are free and written. Bring the car to 22101 Mission Blvd A, or send the photos you took at the scene through our online estimate form and we will respond with numbers. We are an I-CAR Gold Class shop, a certification held by roughly the top 20 percent of collision repair shops in the country.
Collision repairs here use OEM parts, computerized frame measuring, and eco-friendly water-based paint, and we handle ADAS calibration in-house so the cameras and radar behind a new windshield or bumper work the way the factory intended. Every collision repair carries a lifetime warranty.
We are open Monday through Saturday, 9:30 AM to 6:00 PM, on the Mission Blvd corridor in Hayward. Call (510) 244-7184 or start your free estimate online, and we will take it from the tow hook to the final calibration.