# Virginia HB788: Vehicle crash reports; open to inspection by towing and recovery operators.

Virginia HB788, Vehicle crash reports; open to inspection by towing and recovery operators., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Terry L. Austin (Republican); status signed, last action 2026-04-06 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0220)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB788-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB788
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Vehicle crash reports; open to inspection by towing and recovery operators.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-13
- Last action: 2026-04-06, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0220)
- Sponsor: Terry L. Austin (Republican)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 8 (315 yes, 1 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 3

## Summary

Vehicle crash reports; open to inspection by certain persons; towing and recovery operators. Makes certain vehicle crash reports open for inspection and available to towing and recovery operators that responded to a public safety towing request for the removal of a vehicle involved in such crash for purposes of obtaining registered owner information and insurance information for any such vehicle. The bill prohibits the dissemination of any such crash report received by such a towing and recovery operator to any other party.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Crash records kept for 3 years: benefit, low. The DMV keeps crash reports for at least 36 months after the crash. The DMV or State Police also keep nonfatal crash photos for at least 36 months. This preserves records people need for insurance claims and legal matters.
- Crash report access and copy fees: mixed, low. People involved or hurt in the crash, vehicle or property owners, and their lawyers can inspect the crash report. Insurers expecting a claim and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration can inspect it too. Personal representatives may inspect; for minors, a parent or guardian may inspect. Th…
- Towing operators: limited access, no sharing: mixed, low. A towing and recovery operator who answered a public safety tow request may inspect the officer’s crash report. Access is only to get the vehicle’s registered owner and insurance information. Any crash report the operator receives cannot be shared with anyone else.

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Terry L. Austin (Republican), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-02-24 | Senate | Passed Senate Block Vote | pass | 39 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-23 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-23 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 37 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-19 | Senate | Reported from Transportation | pass | 13 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-04 | House | Passed House Block Vote | pass | 98 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-04 | House | Read third time and passed House Block Vote | pass | 97 | 1 |   |
| 2026-01-29 | House | Reported from Transportation with substitute | pass | 21 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-27 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute | pass | 10 | 0 |   |

## Actions (33)

- 2026-04-06: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0220) (Governor)
- 2026-04-06: Approved by Governor-Chapter 220 (effective 7/1/2026) (Governor)
- 2026-03-10: Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 (Governor)
- 2026-03-10: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 10, 2026 (House)
- 2026-02-26: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB788) (House)
- 2026-02-26: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB788ER) (House)
- 2026-02-26: Enrolled (House)
- 2026-02-26: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-02-26: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-02-24: Passed Senate Block Vote (39-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-24: Read third time (Senate)
- 2026-02-23: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-02-23: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (37-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-23: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-02-19: Reported from Transportation (13-Y 0-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-05: Referred to Committee on Transportation (Senate)
- 2026-02-05: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate)
- 2026-02-04: Passed House Block Vote (98-Y 0-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-04: Reconsideration of passage agreed to by House (House)
- 2026-02-04: Read third time and passed House Block Vote (97-Y 1-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-03: Engrossed by House - committee substitute (House)
- 2026-02-03: committee substitute agreed to (House)
- 2026-02-03: Read second time (House)
- 2026-02-02: Read first time (House)
- 2026-01-30: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB788) (House)
- 2026-01-29: Committee substitute printed 26106584D-H1 (House)
- 2026-01-29: House committee offered (House)
- 2026-01-29: Reported from Transportation with substitute (21-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-27: House subcommittee offered (House)
- 2026-01-27: Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitute (10-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-22: Assigned HTRAN sub: Department of Motor Vehicles (House)
- 2026-01-13: Referred to Committee on Transportation (House)
- 2026-01-13: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26103402D (House)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-06: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1216882.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1216881.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-02-26: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179702.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179701.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-01-29: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1101732.HTML), [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1100746.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1100745.PDF), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1101731.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-01-27: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1098048.HTML), [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1097260.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1098047.PDF), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1097259.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1085914.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1085913.PDF)

## Related bills

- HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with rental agreement. (signed)
- HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for certain individuals. (signed)
- HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, termination by landlord. (signed)
- HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil penalty. (signed)

## Sources
- [Chaptered (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1216882.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1216881.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179702.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1179701.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1101732.HTML)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1100746.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1100745.PDF)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1101731.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1098048.HTML)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1097260.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1098047.PDF)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1097259.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1085914.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1085913.PDF)

## Related
- [HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB5-2026)
- [SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB199-2026)
- [HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB95-2026)
- [HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1393-2026)
- [HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, terminat…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB834-2026)
- [HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB675-2026)
- [Virginia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia/bills)
- [Virginia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia)
- [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB788-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).