Failing to stop, stay, and give required help or information after a crash.

"Stop" means pulling over as close as safely possible. "Stay" means remaining there until the basic legal duties are finished. Those duties usually include checking whether anyone is hurt, giving your name, contact and vehicle information, and, when needed, showing a driver's license and calling for emergency help. The rule applies whether the crash involved another driver, a pedestrian, a bicyclist, or unattended property. People often call it a "hit and run," but the legal issue is the same: driving off before handling those duties.

Practically, this matters because leaving can turn an ordinary traffic case into a criminal one very quickly. In Montana, Montana Code Annotated sections 61-7-103, 61-7-105, and 61-7-108 set out duties after accidents involving injury, death, attended vehicles, and unattended property. A driver who leaves may face charges, fines, license consequences, and worse exposure if someone was injured and help was delayed. On slick roads shaped by chinook melt-and-refreeze cycles, even a low-speed collision can become more serious than it first looks.

For an injury claim, leaving the scene can strongly affect proof and credibility. It may support an argument that the driver knew something was wrong and chose to avoid responsibility. Montana does not cap non-economic damages in auto injury cases, so evidence tied to a driver's conduct after the crash can matter when valuing damages, negligence, and possible punitive damages.