Reporting a hit-and-run, break-in or vandalism to the police with Rivian footage
Updated · by the Overlook team at CTT Apps (about us)
Someone hit your parked Rivian and drove off, broke a window, or keyed a panel, and the cameras were running. The footage is only useful if it survives, reaches the right person, and can be trusted when it gets there. This guide covers the police side: what to do first, what to put in the report, and how to hand over the video. For the insurance side, see using footage for an insurance claim.
This is general information from owners’ experience, not legal advice. Reporting rules and deadlines differ between countries, states and cities; your local police can tell you what applies.
In the first hour
- Make sure everyone is safe.If someone is hurt, a crime is in progress, or the person is still nearby, call the emergency number. Don’t confront anyone.
- Photograph the damage and the scene.Wide shots showing where the car is, then close-ups. Note anything left behind, such as paint transfer or broken glass.
- Secure the footage.Copy the recordings before the car records over them. Every camera, original files, names unchanged.
- Find the moment.Note the exact local time, the camera that shows it best, and any plate or description.
- Report it.Emergency number if it’s happening now; otherwise the non-emergency line or the police’s online report.
Securing the footage
The car keeps recording to the drive and records over the oldest footage when it’s full. If continuous drive recording is on and the drive is small, the window can be short. Take the drive out (after the car has finished writing) and copy the whole recording folder for the event, every camera, to a computer. Copy the recordings just before and after too: the other car arriving, or the person walking up, is often clearer than the moment itself.
If you have a spare drive, put it in the car while you work, so new recordings don’t land on top of the evidence. If Gear Guard didn’t record anything, here’s how to find out why, and check the first minutes of your next drive in RoadCam/DriveStream, which may show the scene.
What the report needs
Police reports ask the same things everywhere. Having them ready makes the call short and the report useful:
| Detail | Where to get it |
|---|---|
| Date and local time it happened | Overlook shows local time. Don’t read it off a Gear Guard file name: those are in UTC and can be hours off. |
| Exact location | Where you parked. The files carry the car’s GPS position, which Overlook shows on a map. |
| Your vehicle | Make, model, colour, plate, and the VIN if they ask. |
| The other vehicle | Plate (or the part you can read), make, model, colour, damage, anything distinctive. Reading a plate from the footage. |
| The person | Clothing, build, direction they went. Describe what you see; don’t guess at identity. |
| The damage | What’s damaged, your photos, and a repair estimate if you have one. |
| That you have video | Say so, which cameras show what, and that you have the original files. |
Ask for the report or incident number and the name of the officer or unit handling it. Your insurer will ask for it, and you’ll need it whenever you follow up.
Report promptly. Many places require you to report damage to an unattended vehicle, or a collision where the other driver left, within a set time, and insurers often want the report number before they’ll process a hit-and-run claim.
Handing over the footage
Ask how they want it before you send anything. You’ll usually be offered one of these:
- An upload link. Many police departments use a digital evidence system and send you a link to upload files directly. It’s the best option when offered: the files go straight into their system, unchanged. Only use a link that comes from the department itself, and check it’s their official site.
- Physical media. Some stations ask for a USB stick or disc. Give them a copy on a stick you don’t need back. Never hand over the car’s own drive: you lose your copy, and the car has nothing to record to.
- Email. Video is usually too large to attach. A private link (from a cloud service, or an Overlook Plus share link) works if they accept links; ask first, as some departments can’t open them.
Whatever the method, send both a watchable version and the originals:
- a short combined video of the moment, with every camera and the date and time on screen, that anyone can play;
- snapshots of the plate, the person or the contact;
- the original files, unchanged, ideally as an evidence package with fingerprints so they can check nothing was edited. What an evidence package contains.
Keep a record of what you gave
Footage you hand over may be questioned later, sometimes months later. A simple record makes that easy:
- keep your own copy of everything you sent, unchanged, somewhere other than the car’s drive;
- write down what you gave, to whom, when and how (“evidence package, uploaded via the department’s link, 22 Oct, 4:10 PM”);
- keep emails and messages with the officer and the report number together.
An Overlook evidence package (what it holds) emails you a dated receipt with the fingerprint of its manifest, which is a timestamped record of exactly what the package held on the day you made it.
Posting it online
It’s tempting to post the video to local groups to find the driver. Think about it before you do:
- it can tip off the person before the police reach them;
- strangers can identify the wrong person, and a public accusation can come back on you;
- the footage shows other people, plates and your own car’s details. Original files also carry your VIN and location.
If you do share, ask the officer first, share a trimmed clip rather than the originals, and stick to describing what the video shows. How to share a clip without the extras.
Following up
Hit-and-runs and vandalism are often low priority unless there’s a plate or an injury, so don’t be surprised by a slow response. Useful things you can do:
- give your insurer the report number, so the claim isn’t held up waiting for the police;
- ask nearby businesses or neighbours for their camera footage soon: many systems keep only days or weeks;
- if you find more footage later (a later Gear Guard event, the same car returning), add it to the report using the report number rather than starting a new one.
Troubleshooting and questions
Do I need to call 911 for a parked hit-and-run?
In the US, usually not, if nobody is hurt and the other driver has gone: use the police non-emergency number or online report. Call 911 if someone is hurt, it’s happening now, or the person is still there. Other countries have their own numbers and rules.
The police didn’t ask for the footage
Tell them you have it and ask them to note it in the report. Keep the originals safe anyway. An insurer, a court or a later investigation may want it even if the first officer didn’t.
Can I give them the USB drive from the car?
Give a copy instead. The car’s drive is your only copy, the car records over it, and you need it back in the car. A copied file is identical, and an evidence package lets them check that.
The plate isn’t readable. Is it still worth reporting?
Yes. A report is usually needed for the insurance claim anyway, and a make, model, colour, partial plate and exact time can still help, especially if the same car turns up again. Getting the most from a plate.
Is it legal to give the police my footage?
Generally, yes: it’s your car recording around itself. Rules on recording people (especially audio) and on sharing footage publicly vary by place. If you’re unsure, ask the officer or a lawyer.
Related guides
- How to read a license plate in Rivian camera footageFind the sharpest frame, zoom without fooling yourself, and know when a plate can’t be read.
- Using Rivian camera footage for an insurance claim or police reportWhat to keep, how to show it was not edited, and how to send it.
- Rivian Gear Guard didn’t record? How to find out whyCheck the setting, the drive, the space and the car’s power, in the order that finds the cause fastest.