News · Criminal law explainer
Can police take your blood after a crash in NSW?
After a serious crash, blood and urine testing is routine, and drivers are often unsure what they have to do, especially while being treated in hospital. In New South Wales the law requires testing in defined situations. This note explains when police and hospital staff can take your blood after a crash, how the samples are used, and what it means if you are charged.
By Aaron Kernaghan · Published 3 September 2026
Yes. After a crash in NSW, a driver, and sometimes others involved, can be required to give blood and urine samples for alcohol and drug testing, usually at hospital where a person is being treated. Refusing or failing to provide a required sample is itself an offence, often treated as seriously as a high-range reading. The results can be used in evidence if you are charged.
When can blood be taken after a crash?
The Road Transport Act provides for compulsory blood and urine testing in defined situations, particularly after a crash. A driver involved in an accident, and in some cases other people involved, can be required to provide samples. Where a person is taken to hospital, the medical staff may be required to take a blood sample as part of the process.
This is separate from a roadside breath test. It is a formal testing regime triggered by the crash, and it covers both alcohol and drugs.
Do you have to provide a sample?
Generally, yes, where a sample is lawfully required. Refusing or failing to provide a required blood or urine sample is an offence in its own right, and it is often treated as seriously as the most serious drink-driving offence, with heavy penalties and a long disqualification. So refusing is usually not a way to avoid the consequences.
There are limited situations where a sample is not required, such as where a medical practitioner certifies it would be dangerous to the person's health. Otherwise the requirement generally applies.
How are the samples used?
The samples are analysed for alcohol concentration and for the presence of drugs. The results can be used as evidence in any charge that follows, such as a PCA offence, a drug-driving offence, or a more serious charge such as dangerous driving where the crash caused death or injury.
The certificate of analysis is important evidence. As with a breath analysis, the timing and the process of taking the sample can matter to its use in evidence.
What if you were injured?
The testing regime is designed to operate even where a driver is injured and being treated. Blood can be taken by hospital staff as part of the process. Being injured does not, by itself, avoid the requirement, though genuine medical reasons can affect what happens.
If you were injured in a crash and blood was taken, and you are later charged, the circumstances of the sample can be relevant. It is worth getting advice about how the sample was obtained.
What should you do if charged?
If you are charged after a crash, the blood or urine result will often be central, so how it was obtained and analysed matters. There may be issues about the timing, the process, or the reliability of the result, which a lawyer can assess from the brief.
Get advice before any interview. A crash that leads to injury or death can result in serious charges, and early advice is important. Our note on DUI and PCA explains the offences that can follow.
Frequently asked.
Can police take my blood after a crash in NSW?
Yes. After a crash, a driver, and sometimes others involved, can be required to give blood and urine samples for alcohol and drug testing, usually at hospital where a person is being treated.
Do I have to give a blood sample after a crash?
Generally, yes, where it is lawfully required. Refusing or failing to provide a required sample is an offence in its own right, often treated as seriously as the most serious drink-driving offence.
What are the samples used for?
They are analysed for alcohol and drugs, and the results can be used in evidence in any charge that follows, such as a PCA offence, a drug-driving offence, or dangerous driving where the crash caused death or injury.
Can they take my blood if I am injured?
Yes. The regime is designed to operate even where a driver is injured and being treated, with blood taken by hospital staff. Genuine medical reasons can affect what happens, but being injured does not by itself avoid the requirement.
What should I do if charged after a crash?
Get advice before any interview. The blood or urine result is often central, and how it was obtained and analysed can matter. A crash causing injury or death can lead to serious charges.
To speak to a criminal defence lawyer, call Aaron Kernaghan on 0421 717 019.
This article is written by Aaron Kernaghan, criminal defence lawyer at Good Legal Lawyers, as at 3 September 2026. It is commentary and reflects the personal opinion of the author only. It is not legal advice, it is not a substitute for advice on your own matter, and it does not purport to be accurate or complete. Any matter referred to may be before the court and any person charged is presumed innocent. For advice on a specific matter, contact Aaron Kernaghan on 0421 717 019 or contact the firm.
More criminal-law commentary by Aaron Kernaghan.
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