Accident towing in Columbus, around the clock: after a crash we load the wrecked car, sweep up the vehicle debris, bill your insurer and take the car to our lot or straight to your body shop. If anyone is hurt or a car is in a live lane, call 911 first.
Call (740) 812-9489A crash turns a normal drive into a string of decisions made on the shoulder: is the car safe to move, who gets called, where the car should go and who pays. Roadside Towing & Recovery Inc handles the towing side of that for drivers across Columbus and Central Ohio. We respond to crash scenes 24/7, and when the officer allows you to choose the tow company, you can request us at (740) 812-9489.
This page is the full guide to accident towing with us: what happens at a Columbus crash scene, the Ohio rules that apply to drivers, how to get the crash report, how insurance billing works, where your car goes, how to avoid paying for a second tow or extra storage days, and what our driver cleans up before leaving. It is general information, not legal advice; each rule below names the official source it comes from.
Call (740) 812-9489 · Request a tow now (SOS) · Get an online quote
Step-by-step help for the hours and days after a crash, written for Columbus drivers.
If anyone is hurt, a car is on fire or leaking heavily, or a car is stopped in a live travel lane, call 911 before you call anyone else. A tow can wait; people cannot. On an Ohio highway, the State Highway Patrol's help center lists #677 for the Patrol and 911 for local police.
If the cars still drive and nobody is hurt, the Ohio Department of Public Safety's Digest of Ohio Motor Vehicle Laws says: "In minor crashes, if possible and safe to do so, remove your vehicle from the flow of traffic." That is official state guidance rather than a statute, and it keeps a fender bender from turning into a second crash. Pull onto the shoulder or the nearest side street and turn on your hazards. On a freeway shoulder, the Patrol's advice for a stopped car is to stay with it with your safety belt on.
Ohio Revised Code 4511.213, the Move Over law, protects everyone working at the scene. When a stopped emergency vehicle, highway maintenance vehicle or road service vehicle has its flashing lights on, drivers on a multi-lane road must move to a lane that is not next to it if they safely can, and otherwise slow down and proceed with due caution. ORC 4511.01 defines road service vehicles to include wreckers, so the law covers our truck while your car is being loaded.
Ohio law also says what every driver in a crash must do before leaving. ORC 4549.02 requires drivers to stop and stay at the scene until they have given their name and address, the owner's name and address if they are not the owner, and the vehicle's registration number to the other driver, anyone injured and the police officer at the scene.
Every crash is different, but most accident calls in Columbus follow the same order. Knowing it ahead of time makes the wait less stressful and helps you make the two decisions that matter most for cost: who tows the car, and where it goes.
The fastest way to get a truck to a wreck is a precise location. Columbus roads make that harder than it sounds, because the same stretch of pavement can carry two route numbers and the ramps stack on top of each other.
Downtown, I-70 and I-71 share the same lanes between the split interchanges, so tell the dispatcher which direction you were heading and the last exit or street you passed, not only the route number. On the I-270 outerbelt, give the last exit and the next one, because a truck that enters on the wrong side can lose a lot of time turning around. On SR-315 along the Olentangy River, near the I-670 ramps and the stretch past Ohio State, give the nearest cross street or ramp. On US-33, say whether you were near downtown, on the east side toward Bexley, or heading northwest toward Dublin and Marysville.
City streets are easier to describe but busy to work on. On Broad Street and Morse Road, give the nearest intersection and the business or landmark on the corner, and tell us if the car can be pushed into a parking lot. Our highway guides cover the I-270 outerbelt, I-70, I-71 and SR-315 in more detail.
Your insurer will ask for the crash report, and the agency that investigated the crash is the one that holds it. On November 6, 2026, the City of Columbus "Find an Accident Report" page said Columbus Division of Police electronic crash reports are submitted to the Ohio Department of Public Safety, that copies obtained through the ODPS website cost nothing, and that local copies can be requested through the City's online report request form, with electronic copies free and printed copies charged per page.
For a crash the Ohio State Highway Patrol investigated, the Patrol's help center says reports are ordered online, and its crash report request form asks you to wait at least seven business days after the crash. A crash handled by a county sheriff or a suburban police department, such as Dublin, Westerville or Grove City, is requested from that agency instead.
The ODPS crash retrieval site lets you search by crash number or by date, county and agency, and notes that the investigating agency remains the official record keeper. Ask the officer at the scene for the report or case number and write it down before the tow leaves; it saves days later.
For a minor crash with no officer on scene, the City's "File a Crash Report" page offers an online self-report, which it says is for documentation and insurance purposes only and gets no investigative follow-up. If the other driver had no insurance, ORC 4509.06 lets you send an uninsured-accident report to the BMV within six months of the crash.
On accident tows, we bill the insurance company. That means the call at the scene is about getting the car moved safely, not about pulling out a card. Give our dispatcher or driver your insurer, the claim number if you have one, and the adjuster's name and phone number once the claim is opened. If you do not have a claim number yet, start the claim from the scene with your insurer's app or phone line; that number is what lets the bill move.
Ask your insurer two questions early: whether your policy covers towing and storage, and where they want the car to go. Some insurers want the car at a body shop right away; others send an appraiser to wherever the car is. Knowing the answer before the truck leaves is how you avoid paying for a second tow.
Ohio law gives you one more right worth knowing. ORC 4513.68 says that for a tow that was not ordered by police or a property owner, the towing company must give the driver a written estimate of the fees, services and destination if the driver asks. Ask us anytime and the dispatcher will quote the job from our published rate card before hookup.
If your insurer will not pay part of the bill, payment plans are available only in extenuating circumstances, at the owner's discretion. Damage you believe happened during the tow is handled as a written claim with photos or video sent to our corporate office, and the owner reviews each one personally.
Most accident tows go to our storage lot at 1620 Harrisburg Pike on the southwest side of Columbus, where the car waits safely for your insurer's instructions or an appraiser. That is the usual choice late at night, on weekends, or when you have not picked a shop yet.
If you already know where the car should be repaired, we can take it straight there. The Ohio Department of Insurance's Automobile Insurance Guide puts it plainly: "It's your car. You can have it repaired wherever you choose unless your policy language specifically states otherwise." If you do not have a shop, our dispatcher can route the car to a collision shop in the independent auto repair partner network in Columbus, Powell, Westerville or Hilliard.
Storage at our lot starts the day the vehicle is towed, at $45 a day from our published rate card. The sooner the car moves to its repair shop or the insurer's yard, the smaller that line on the bill.
The most expensive mistake after a crash is rarely the first tow; it is the second one, plus storage days that pile up while a claim waits. A few habits keep the bill to one tow and as few storage days as possible.
Clearing a crash is more than winching a car onto a deck. Before our driver leaves the scene, they sweep up the broken glass, plastic trim and loose parts that came off the vehicle we are towing, so the lane or shoulder can reopen without debris that punctures the next driver's tire. Small drips from the vehicle we are towing get absorbent so they do not track across the pavement.
We do not handle hazardous materials, fuel spills beyond a small drip from the towed car, cargo spills or road damage. Those belong to the fire department and the other responders the officer calls, and our driver works around them on the officer's direction.
Collision damage often means a wheel that will not roll straight, a locked brake or a bent axle, so we choose the equipment for the damage rather than forcing the car onto whatever truck is closest. Flatbed towing carries the whole car; a wheel-lift with dollies works where a flatbed cannot fit.
Electric vehicles always ride with all four wheels off the ground, on a flatbed or on a wheel-lift with dollies as the manufacturer allows, and long runs go on a flatbed. A crashed EV with possible battery damage needs extra care in storage too; our article on storing damaged EVs safely explains why, and EV and Tesla towing covers the equipment. All-wheel-drive cars also travel with all four wheels off the pavement.
Pickups, vans, box trucks and other medium-duty vehicles are towed in-house. Semis, buses and other heavy-duty wrecks are arranged through our heavy-duty partner, with one call to our dispatch and our team as your point of contact.
Ask your insurer whether your policy, or the other driver's, includes a rental while the car is in the shop, and when it starts. If you are a VIP member, the Elite and Platinum tiers include discounted rental days through the CONVINI app while the car is being repaired; the VIP program page lists the tiers.
When the car goes to a partner collision shop, our dispatcher tells the shop it is coming, so the estimate can start without you making extra calls. Each partner shop is independently owned and quotes its own repair work.
Not every crash tow is your choice. Columbus Division of Police Directive 6.01, revised December 30, 2023, tells officers to let an owner or operator who is at the scene arrange a private towing company when there is no legal requirement or need to impound the vehicle and that company can respond without unnecessary delay or a safety concern. When those conditions are not met, for example a driver who is incapacitated or arrested, a car that must be impounded, or a disabled car on the freeway creating a hazard, the officer calls the wrecker.
Columbus City Code Chapter 2107 lists the reasons police may remove a vehicle and sets the City's impound charges. Our full guide, police-called tows after a crash in Columbus: your options, walks through what each source says, where police-ordered tows go, the fees the City publishes and how to get your car and belongings back.
Response times are estimates, never promises, and crash scenes add time for the officer's check-in. Most metro calls are reached in 20–40 minutes and outer communities in 40–60. On the west and southwest side, including Grove City and Hilliard, it is usually 15–30 minutes. The dispatcher gives you an honest ETA to pass along to the officer, and the SOS page sends us your exact GPS location.
This page is general information, not legal advice. Rules change; the sources below were opened on November 6, 2026, and the officer at your scene decides how it is handled.
After a crash, the officer on scene decides whether the car can be driven and, in many cases, whether you may choose the tow company. When you can choose, call (740) 812-9489; we load the car, sweep up the vehicle debris, take it to our lot or your body shop and bill your insurer. If anyone is hurt or a car is in a live lane, call 911 first.
Often, yes. Columbus Division of Police Directive 6.01 tells officers to let an owner or operator who is at the scene arrange a private tow company when there is no legal need to impound the car and the company can arrive without unnecessary delay or a safety concern. If those conditions are not met, the officer calls the wrecker. Our police tow guide has the details.
On accident tows we bill your insurance company, so give us the insurer, claim number and adjuster's contact. Whether your own policy or the other driver's insurer ends up paying depends on your coverage and on fault, so ask your insurer early. Our article on who pays for the tow after a crash covers the common cases.
Usually to our storage lot at 1620 Harrisburg Pike to wait for your insurer's instructions, or straight to the body shop you choose. The Ohio Department of Insurance says you can have your car repaired wherever you choose unless your policy says otherwise.
At our lot, storage starts the day the vehicle is towed and is charged at the published rate on our rate card. Moving the car to its repair shop quickly, and opening the insurance claim the same day, keeps storage days to a minimum.
Our driver sweeps up the broken glass, plastic and loose parts that came off the vehicle we tow, and puts absorbent on small drips from that vehicle. We do not handle hazardous materials, larger fuel or cargo spills, or road damage; the responders the officer calls take care of those.
Ask the officer for the report number at the scene. The City of Columbus says its police crash reports are submitted to the Ohio Department of Public Safety, where copies are free online, and local copies can be requested from the City. Highway Patrol reports are ordered through the Patrol's online records request.
Yes. EVs ride with all four wheels off the ground, on a flatbed or a wheel-lift with dollies as the manufacturer allows, and longer runs go on a flatbed. Tell the dispatcher it is electric and whether the battery area was hit, so the car can be stored with the right precautions.
Most insurers ask for one, and the investigating agency holds it. For a minor Columbus crash with no officer on scene, the City offers an online self-report for documentation and insurance purposes. If the other driver was uninsured, Ohio law lets you file a report with the BMV within six months.
Roadside Towing & Recovery Inc provides accident and collision towing throughout Columbus and Central Ohio, including Dublin, Westerville, Grove City, Hilliard, Reynoldsburg, Gahanna, Worthington and Whitehall. We respond to crash scenes on I-270, I-70, I-71, SR-315, US-33, Broad Street, Morse Road and every road in between.
Our accident towing service covers loading the wrecked vehicle, picking up the debris that came off it, storage at our 1620 Harrisburg Pike lot or delivery to your body shop, and billing your insurance company. EVs and all-wheel-drive cars always ride with four wheels off the ground.
We respond to crash scenes 24/7. When the officer allows you to choose the tow company, you can request us by calling (740) 812-9489.
$4/mi en-route + $125 hook-up + $7 per mile
Accident towing is billed as $4 per en-route mile (yard to pickup) + $125 hook-up + $7 per loaded mile. Highway calls +$75; after-hours (10PM–6AM) +$150; weekend +$50; large vehicle +$100. Ohio sales tax applies.
Active registered Roadside app members pay a metro flat rate of $125 for the first 5 miles, then $5 per loaded mile, with no en-route charge and no after-hours, weekend or highway fees, for small and medium-size cars picked up inside the I-270 loop or up to 3 miles outside it. Rule #1: you must register in the Roadside app to receive any discount. Customers who are not registered pay retail rates.
Winch-out / off-road recovery: $150 per hour. Storage: $45 per day.
Pay by cash, debit or credit card, or online by card through Stripe (3% card fee). Booking by phone adds a $35 scheduling fee that the online quote builder waives. Veterans: 10% off retail rates, the app-member metro rate or a VIP membership, with a military or veterans ID.
These are full retail rates for customers who are not registered. Active registered Roadside app members pay a metro flat rate of $125 for the first 5 miles, then $5 per loaded mile, with no en-route charge and no after-hours, weekend or highway fees, for small and medium-size cars picked up inside the I-270 loop or up to 3 miles outside it. You must register in the Roadside app to get it: see our VIP Program.
Build an exact quote online — it uses this same published rate card.
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Roadside Towing & Recovery Inc (dba Columbus Roadside Towing).
Corporate office (private, no walk-ins): 3879 Regatta Ct, Lewis Center, OH 43035
Tow yard & impound lot: 1620 Harrisburg Pike, Columbus, OH 43223
(740) 812-9489 · chris@columbusroadsidetowing.com