The airbag has gone off, your hands are shaking, and someone is already asking whose fault it was. What you do over the next two days will shape how your recovery is paid for and whether you can hold the other driver responsible later. Very little of it is obvious in the moment.
Here is what matters in the first 48 hours, in roughly the order it comes up.
At the scene: safety first, then evidence
If anyone is hurt, call 911. If the vehicles can move safely, get them out of live traffic. Ontario law requires you to remain at the scene and exchange information, so do that before anything else.
Collect the other driver’s name, licence number, plate, insurer and policy number. Photograph everything: the vehicles from several angles, the road, skid marks, traffic signs, weather, and any visible injuries. If there are witnesses, get names and phone numbers before they leave. Witness accounts are worth far more when they are gathered in the first hour than when someone tries to track them down months later.
Do not apologise or speculate about fault, even out of politeness. A casual “I didn’t see you” can end up in an insurer’s file.
Report the collision
If anyone is injured, police should attend. Where there are no injuries and the damage is minor, you may be directed to a Collision Reporting Centre instead; in Toronto and most of the GTA you generally have 24 hours to attend. Get the report number. It becomes the anchor document for every claim that follows.
See a doctor the same day, even if you feel fine
Adrenaline masks injury. Whiplash, concussion and soft-tissue damage frequently do not announce themselves until the next morning. A same-day visit to a walk-in clinic, family doctor or emergency department creates a medical record that links your symptoms to the collision. Insurers treat a gap between the accident and the first medical visit as a reason to question whether the injuries came from the crash at all.
Describe every symptom, however minor. Headaches, dizziness, sleep disruption and trouble concentrating are as important to record as neck pain.
Notify your own insurer within seven days
In Ontario, your accident benefits come from your own auto insurer regardless of who caused the crash. The Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule expects you to notify your insurer within seven days of the accident, or as soon as practicable, and to submit your application for benefits within 30 days of receiving the forms. Missing these windows does not always end the claim, but it gives the insurer a reason to delay or deny.
One development you need to know about: for policies issued or renewed on or after July 1, 2026, most accident benefits in Ontario became optional. Medical, rehabilitation and attendant care benefits remain mandatory in every policy. Income replacement, non-earner, caregiver and housekeeping benefits are now included only if they were selected. Find your policy documents in these first 48 hours and confirm what you actually bought, because it determines what you can claim from your own insurer while you recover.
Be careful what you say, and to whom
The other driver’s insurer may call within days, sounding friendly and asking for a recorded statement. You are not required to give one, and you should not do so before getting advice. Everything you say can be used to minimise the claim later.
The same caution applies to social media. A photo of you at a family barbecue two days after the crash will be presented as proof you were not really hurt, regardless of how you felt an hour later.
Start a file
Keep a simple folder, physical or digital, with the police report number, photographs, the names of everyone you have spoken to, receipts for medication and transportation, and a short daily note on symptoms and what you could and could not do. Time off work should be recorded from day one. Claims are won and lost on documentation, and memory fades faster than most people expect.
Understand there are two separate claims
Accident benefits from your own insurer are one track. A tort claim against the at-fault driver for pain and suffering, income loss and future care is a completely separate track with its own rules and deadlines. The Insurance Act requires written notice to the other driver of your intention to sue within 120 days of the accident, and the lawsuit itself must generally be started within two years. Neither of those deadlines will be explained to you by an insurer.
Our motor vehicle accident page explains how the two tracks fit together, and our personal injury FAQs answer the questions we hear most often in the first week.
Get advice early
The first 48 hours are not the time to make decisions about settlement, but they are the time to protect your position. If you have been injured in a collision anywhere in Ontario, book a consultation with Kabir & Alam Lawyers. We can review your policy, handle the insurer correspondence, and make sure the deadlines that matter are met while you focus on recovering.