After a road accident

1Your situation

A few questions. We show only the documents and steps your answers need.

Your answers stay on this phone.

Each step below says who it is for. Confirm yours at the office, then change your answer here.

2Documents you need

Tick the ones you have. They are kept in this browser.

• Form I (application for hit-and-run compensation)original · It asks for the details of the injured or dead person, the place, date and time of the accident, the police station where it was registered, the hospital or doctor who treated them, and the applicant's Aadhaar number. If there was cashless treatment, attach a copy of the hospital's bill.If you don't have it: The form is part of the scheme's Gazette notification. Ask for it at the Revenue Divisional Officer's (RDO) office.Have itNeed it
• Form IV (undertaking to refund)original · A promise to pay this amount back if you later get other compensation for the same accident.If you don't have it: In the same Gazette notification as Form I.Have itNeed it
• Copy of the bank passbookcopy · The injured person's account, or the account of the legal representative of the person who died.Have itNeed it

Nothing to get ready before these steps.

3Your steps

· Do them in order. Tick each one when it is done.

1. Do this now

   Call 108 for an ambulance, or call 112.

   Get the injured person to the nearest hospital.

   Where

   By phone

   Sources: 2, 1, 4

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2. Do this now

   Every Dr.

   NTR Vaidya Seva network hospital, private or government, must treat road accident victims at once and register every case under the PM RAHAT scheme. The Trust has told hospitals this is mandatory under section 162 of the Motor Vehicles Act.

   Where

   Dr. NTR Vaidya Seva network hospital

   Sources: 5

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3. Do this now

   The law protects anyone who, in good faith and without expecting a reward, helps an accident victim or takes them to hospital (a Good Samaritan).

   You are not liable to any civil or criminal action for harm to the victim while you were helping.

   Where

   You do this yourself

   Sources: 8

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4. Do this now

   The Act lets the central government make rules on how a Good Samaritan is questioned and on disclosing their personal details.

   If the police ask for your details, ask what those rules say.

   Where

   You do this yourself

   Not confirmed: We could not read these rules: on 1 November 2026 the Press Information Bureau's site refused our requests. Whether you must give your name or be a witness is in those rules; ask at the police station or the District Legal Services Authority (15100).

   Sources: 8

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5. Do this now

   A central government scheme gives an award to anyone who saves the life of a victim by getting them to hospital within the golden hour (the first hour after the accident).

   The hospital or police station should give you an acknowledgement on its letter pad with your name, mobile number and address, the place, date and time, and how you helped, send a copy to the district committee and give a copy to you. A committee under the District Collector approves the names each month, and the Transport Commissioner pays the award straight into your bank account.

   Where

   The hospital or the police station

   Not confirmed: This order is from 2021 and gives no amount. Ask at the District Transport Officer's office what the award is now and how long it takes.

   Sources: 12

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6. Do this now

   Under the PM RAHAT scheme, each victim gets cashless treatment up to ₹1.5 lakh, for up to 7 days from the day of the accident.

   It applies on every kind of road.

   Where

   Dr. NTR Vaidya Seva network hospital

   Fee

   Free · Free up to ₹1.5 lakh, for up to 7 days.

   Time limit

   7 days from the day of the accident.

   Not confirmed: These details are from the Trust's 2026 circular to hospitals; we did not read the scheme's own rules (S.O. 2015(E), 2025). Ask the Vaidyamithra at the hospital whether treatment beyond ₹1.5 lakh or 7 days goes on with a Vaidya Seva card.

   Sources: 5, 7

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7. Do this now

   Tell the Vaidyamithra or the hospital staff that this is a road accident and ask them to register it under PM RAHAT.

   The hospital itself must ask for the prior approval (preauthorisation) for the treatment.

   Where

   Dr. NTR Vaidya Seva network hospital

   Sources: 5

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8. Do this now

   Make sure the accident is recorded at the police station of the area where it happened.

   If you reported it by phone, go to the station in person afterwards. Write down that police station's name and address; the compensation application asks for them.

   Where

   Police station of the area where the accident happened

   Sources: 3, 10

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9. Do this now

   During the investigation, the police must prepare an accident information report and send it to the Claims Tribunal within three months, to help settle the claim.

   Where

   You do this yourself

   Time limit

   The police must send it within three months.

   Sources: 8, 9

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10. Do this now

    You can apply for compensation yourself to the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT).

    If the injured person dies later, the right to claim passes to their legal representatives. Apply as soon as you can: the Act says to apply within six months of the accident. Cases on this limit are pending in the Supreme Court; on 4 November 2025 it told tribunals and High Courts not to dismiss claims as late under it while those cases are pending, and on 17 February 2026 it said this continues until further orders. If six months have already passed, get help from the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA, 15100) before you apply.

    Where

    Motor Accident Claims Tribunal

    Time limit

    Within six months of the accident by the Act; see the Supreme Court's order in this step.

    Not confirmed: The official pages we read do not say where your district's Claims Tribunal sits or which tribunal you may apply to (India Code, which has the full text of the Act, did not open on 1 November 2026). Ask the District Legal Services Authority in the district court complex. The official records we could read do not say whether the Supreme Court has since decided these cases (the latest we read is its office report of 17 April 2026); ask the District Legal Services Authority.

    Sources: 8, 9, 14, 15, 13, 16

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11. Do this now

    The owner of the vehicle or its insurer must pay a fixed ₹5 lakh for a death, or ₹2.5 lakh for grievous hurt.

    For this amount you do not have to prove that the driver or owner was at fault.

    Where

    You do this yourself

    Sources: 8, 9

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12. Do this now

    The insurance company names an officer to settle the claim.

    Within 30 days that officer may offer you a settlement before the Tribunal. If you accept, the insurer must pay within 30 days of the Tribunal recording it. If you refuse, the Tribunal hears the claim and decides. If you accept the fixed sum (₹5 lakh / ₹2.5 lakh) this way, your claim petition before the Tribunal lapses.

    Where

    Motor Accident Claims Tribunal

    Time limit

    30 days for the offer; 30 days for payment once you accept.

    Sources: 8, 9

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13. Do this now

    For hit-and-run compensation, fill in Form I.

    Hand it, with the Form IV undertaking and a copy of the bank passbook (and a copy of the hospital's bill if there was cashless treatment), to the Claims Enquiry Officer of the area where the accident happened. In Andhra Pradesh that officer is the Sub Divisional Officer (Revenue Divisional Officer, RDO) of the area.

    Where

    Claims Enquiry Officer: the Sub Divisional Officer's (RDO) office

    Not confirmed: The 2024 order says "Sub Divisional Officer"; we take this to be the RDO. Ask at the RDO or Tahsildar office where to hand in the application.

    Sources: 10, 11

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14. Do this now

    The fixed compensation for a hit-and-run accident is ₹2 lakh for a death and ₹50,000 for grievous hurt.

    What was paid to the hospital for cashless treatment is taken out of it.

    Where

    You do this yourself

    Sources: 8, 9, 10

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15. Do this now

    The Claims Enquiry Officer gets the police's first accident report and the post-mortem report, and holds an enquiry.

    Within one month of receiving your application, they must send a report to the District Collector (Claims Settlement Commissioner).

    Where

    You do this yourself

    Time limit

    A report within one month of the application.

    Sources: 10, 11

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16. Do this now

    The Collector should sanction the compensation within 15 days of receiving the report.

    The money must then reach your bank account within 15 days of the sanction order (another 30 days is allowed, with reasons written to the Collector).

    Where

    You do this yourself

    Time limit

    15 days to sanction; another 15 days to pay.

    Sources: 10

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17. Do this now

    If you need legal help with a compensation claim, go to the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) in your district court complex.

    Toll-free number: 15100.

    Where

    District Legal Services Authority (district court complex)

    Fee

    Legal aid is free for the weaker sections of society.

    Sources: 13

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