How do I read my Texas crash report (CR-3)?

What is on a CR-3?

The CR-3 is the Texas Peace Officer's Crash Report. Every officer in Texas uses the same form, whether a Houston police officer, a DPS trooper or a sheriff's deputy, and fills it in with numbers and letters from TxDOT's code sheet (CR-3CS). The rules for how each box is filled in are in TxDOT's officer manual, the CR-100, now in version 29.0 (June 2025). Reports for crashes since April 1, 2023 use the 2023 form.

So the report reads like a code book. Once you know where to look, it tells you a lot. This page walks through the boxes that matter for an injury claim. If you still need a copy, see how to get your Texas crash report or, for Houston police reports, how to get your crash report in Houston.

Who is Unit 1 and who is Unit 2?

Each vehicle, pedestrian or bicycle is a unit, numbered 1, 2, 3 and so on. A trailer counts as its own unit, so an 18-wheeler can be Unit 1 with its trailer as Unit 2. Inside each unit, each person has a person number and a person type (1 is the driver, 2 is a passenger).

The unit number is not a fault finding, but it is a clue. TxDOT's manual tells officers that the “best practice” is to list the vehicle that was the proximate cause of the crash as Unit 1. If you are Unit 1, read the back of the report closely. If you are Unit 2, the officer likely saw the other driver as the cause, but the factor codes are what actually say so.

Each unit's block also shows the driver's license, the vehicle, the owner, a damage rating and the proof of financial responsibility: the insurance company, policy number and phone. Errors in this part are common and they slow claims down, so it is the first thing we check.

What do the injury codes K, A, B, C and N mean?

Each person gets an injury severity code from the code sheet:

• K: fatal injury
• A: suspected serious injury
• B: suspected minor injury
• C: possible injury
• N: not injured
• 99: unknown

This code is the officer's quick impression at the scene, not a diagnosis. Officers are not doctors, and many crash injuries, like concussions, torn ligaments and disc injuries, don't show their full extent for hours or days. An “N” or “C” does not decide how badly you are hurt. Your medical records do. If a person dies within 30 days, the manual requires a supplement changing the code to K. The back of the report also shows where each injured person was taken and by whom.

What are contributing factors, and what does "may have contributed" mean?

On the back of the report is a box called Contributing Factors (Investigator's Opinion). For each unit, the officer can enter up to three contributing factors, ranked with the most important first, and up to two “may have contributed” factors, for things the officer thinks were present but can't say caused the crash. Some common codes:

• 4: changed lane when unsafe
• 16: disregard stop sign or light
• 20: driver inattention
• 22: failed to control speed
• 33 to 39: failed to yield right of way (for example, 35 at a stop sign and 37 turning left)
• 44: followed too closely
• 60: unsafe speed, and 61: speeding over the limit
• 74 to 77: cell or mobile device use (talking, texting, other, unknown)
• 98: other, which the officer must explain in the narrative

Separate boxes record vehicle defects (like bad brakes or tires) and environmental and roadway conditions (weather, light, road surface, traffic control). When a unit has no factor at all, it can mean the officer didn't think that driver contributed, or that there wasn't enough evidence to say.

A factor is the officer's opinion, not a ticket and not a verdict

The form itself labels the factors as the investigator's opinion. Texas A&M Transportation Institute training for officers says the same thing: contributing factors are not traffic charges or violations. Tickets go in a different box, called Charges, which lists the unit, the person, the charge and a citation or reference number. You can have a factor coded against you without any ticket, and the other way around.

Neither one decides your injury claim. Most officers arrive after the crash and form an opinion from what they see and hear. In Texas, fault is decided by proportionate responsibility under Civil Practice and Remedies Code chapter 33, by the insurers and, if needed, a jury, using all the evidence. We explain what to do when the opinion goes against you in the police report says I was at fault.

Read the narrative and the diagram

The Investigator's Narrative Opinion of What Happened is where the officer explains the codes in words: who was going which way, what each driver and witness said, and what the officer concluded. The Field Diagram, which the form says is “not to scale,” shows lanes, directions and where the vehicles ended up. Read them against the codes. When the narrative says “Unit 2 stated the light was green” but no witness was interviewed, or the diagram puts a car in the wrong lane, that matters more than any single box.

Can the crash report be used in court?

People often hear that Texas crash reports can't be used in court. The statute usually cited, Transportation Code § 550.066, is narrower than that. It says only that a person's answer to one question on the form, whether they want to be contacted by someone seeking to be hired as a professional (the solicitation box), is not admissible in a civil trial. It does not say anything about the officer's opinion of fault.

Whether the rest of the report, or the officer's opinions, come in at trial is decided by the judge under the Texas Rules of Evidence. Rule 803(8) lets factual findings from a legally authorized investigation in, unless the other side shows they aren't trustworthy, and an officer's opinions about cause can be challenged. In practice, though, most claims never reach a courtroom, and insurance adjusters read the report on day one. That is why what it says matters right away.

What if a box is wrong?

Mistakes are common: the wrong insurer, units switched, a missing witness, an injury code that doesn't match the ambulance ride. Only the officer who wrote the report can change a material fact in it, and other changes go in a written supplement from the agency (§ 550.068). TxDOT can't edit it. Don't call the officer or the adjuster to argue about it yourself. We gather what shows the error, such as photos, your insurance card, EMS records or a witness's statement, and ask the agency for a supplement. When the problem is the officer's opinion rather than a fact, we answer it with evidence, including the 911 call and body camera or dash camera video.

When you hire us, we read your report line by line and deal with the agency and the insurance companies. You talk with Jimmy directly, in English or Spanish, by phone, text, email or video call, and in person when needed, wherever you are in Texas.

Other ways people ask this

What does Unit 1 mean on a Texas crash report?

Each vehicle, pedestrian or bicycle is a numbered unit. TxDOT's manual tells officers the best practice is to list the vehicle that caused the crash as Unit 1, so it is a clue, but the contributing factor codes are what record the officer's opinion.

What does injury code B mean on a CR-3?

B means suspected minor injury, A suspected serious injury, C possible injury, K fatal, N not injured and 99 unknown. It is the officer's impression at the scene, not a medical diagnosis.

What is the difference between contributing and may have contributed?

A contributing factor is one the officer believes helped cause the crash, up to three per unit. A may-have-contributed factor, up to two per unit, is one the officer thinks was present but can't say caused it.

Is a contributing factor the same as a ticket?

No. Factors are the investigator's opinion. Tickets are listed separately under Charges, with a citation or reference number.

What does code 20 mean on a Texas crash report?

Driver inattention. Other common codes are 44 followed too closely, 60 unsafe speed, 61 speeding over the limit, and 33 to 39 for failure to yield right of way.

Can a Texas crash report be used in court?

Transportation Code § 550.066 only keeps out a person's answer to the solicitation question on the form. Whether the officer's findings or opinions come in is up to the judge under the Texas Rules of Evidence.

The report says I caused the crash. Is my claim over?

No. The officer's opinion binds no one, and Texas lets you recover as long as you are not more than 50% responsible. We answer the report with evidence.

Authority: TxDOT: Crash records forms for law enforcement (CR-3, CR-3CS, CR-100) · TxDOT CR-100 Instructions to Police for Reporting Crashes, v29.0 · TxDOT CR-3 code sheet (rev. 4/1/2023) · Texas A&M Transportation Institute: Contributing Factors tip card · Tex. Transp. Code ch. 550 (§§ 550.064, 550.066, 550.068)