Accident Contributing Circumstances Guide

Understanding your North Carolina Crash Report or DMV-349 requires interpreting the official North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicle codes. This code protocol was created by the NC DMV to assist investigating officers in gathering a large volume of information from any accident scene and processing that data into a manageable format. Your North Carolina Crash Report cannot be interpreted or understood without knowing the code protocol. This guide will provide you with official codes related to the “Contributing Circumstances” boxes No. 14 – 19. By comparing all numbers entered on your accident report in boxes No. 14 – 19 to the corresponding numbers contained in this guide, you may be able to gain a deeper understanding as to whose actions the officer determined to be the cause of the accident.

The investigating officer’s opinion of who caused the accident is possibly the most important information in your case. Please do not proceed any further with your claim unless you are certain that you completely understand the mechanics of this information and how it relates to your claim.

Contributing Circumstances Codes for Boxes No. 14-19:

1. No contributing circumstances indicated
2. Disregarded yield sign
3. Disregarded stop sign
4. Disregarded other traffic signs
5. Disregarded traffic signals
6. Disregarded road markings
7. Exceeded authorized speed limit
8. Exceeded safe speed for conditions
9. Failure to reduce speed
10. Improper turn
11. Right turn on red
12. Crossed center line/going wrong way
13. Improper lane change
14. Use of improper lane
15. Over corrected/over steered
16. Passed stopped school bus
17. Passed on hill
18. Passed on curve
19. Other improper passing
20. Failed to yield right of way
21. Inattention
22. Improper backing
23. Improper parking
24. Driver distracted
25. Improper or no signal
26. Followed too closely
27. Operated vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent, or aggressive manner
28. Swerved or avoided due to wind, slippery surface, vehicle, object, non-motorist
29. Visibility obstructed
30. Operated defective equipment
31. Alcohol use
32. Drug use
33. Other* (write in the narrative)
34. Unable to determine
35. Unknown
36. Driver distracted by electronic communication device (cell phone, texting, etc.)
37. Driver distracted by other electronic device (navigation device, DVD player, etc.)
38. Driver distracted by others inside the vehicle
39. Driver distracted by external distraction (outside the vehicle)

For more information on understanding your accident report, please read Understanding Your Accident Report.