The crash you did not plan for

Hit by a car in China: what a foreign visitor does at the scene

In short

I have just been in a road accident in China — what do I do?

Get out of live traffic and check for injuries; call 120 for an ambulance if anyone is hurt, and 122 for the traffic police, the road-accident line both the UK FCDO and the Australian Embassy publish. Stay at the scene. Under Ministry of Public Security Order No. 146 the traffic police must inform you of your rights and provide a translator if you do not speak Chinese — and a foreigner can be barred from leaving China while a serious accident case is unresolved, so a crash is not something to walk away from.

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Applies to

Any foreign visitor caught in a road accident — hit as a pedestrian, a passenger in a taxi or DiDi, or riding a shared bike or e-bike. It is about being in the accident, not the legality of driving.

Check before you rely on it

No opened official source says 122 answers English; treat the three-digit lines as Chinese-first. The exact on-the-scene mechanics for a minor bump are not published for foreigners on any page opened here, so this guide asserts only what the regulation and the two number lists actually say.

Information checked: 2026-07-25

Most visitors never drive in China, but plenty cross its roads on foot, ride an e-bike, or sit in the back of a taxi. If a crash happens, the number is 122 — the one the site’s old one-line /contact note left out — and the handling runs under a foreign-related chapter of Chinese law.

Back to recovery All the emergency numbers

At the scene

What to do, in order

The sequence for a road accident, with only the officially-sourced parts stated as facts.

1
Get out of live traffic and check for injuries first. If anyone is hurt, call an ambulance on 120 before anything else.
2
Call the traffic police on 122. Two official lists — the UK FCDO and the Australian Embassy — give 122 as the road-accident line; the embassy labels it in plain English as 'Traffic Accident Reports'. No opened source promises it answers English, so be ready with a translation app or a Chinese speaker.
3
Stay at the scene until the traffic police arrive. Under Order No. 146 a foreigner can be barred from leaving China while a serious accident case is unresolved, so leaving the scene of a crash you were involved in is not an option.
4
Let the traffic-management department run the handling. Order No. 146 says they must inform you of the rights and obligations Chinese law gives a party to an accident — ask them to, especially through a translator.
5
Ask for a translator if you do not read or speak Chinese. The regulation requires the department to provide translation; with its approval you may also hire your own translator, but at your own expense.
6
Document everything you safely can: photos of the vehicles, the position, any injuries, plates and the other party's details, plus the time and place. This is the evidence your insurer and the police will both want.
7
Contact your embassy or consulate and your insurer. Your embassy can help you deal with the local authorities; your insurer will tell you what proof of the accident it needs before it pays.

Source: UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office — Foreign travel advice: China — Getting help (read July 25, 2026)

Source: Australian Embassy, Beijing (Consular section) — Emergency Services in China (read July 25, 2026)

Source: Ministry of Public Security Order No. 146, published on the State Council portal (中国政府网 / www.gov.cn) — Provisions on the Procedures for Handling Road Traffic Accidents (道路交通事故处理程序规定), Chapter 10 — foreign-related accidents (source dated 2017-07-22 (issued; effective 2018-05-01); read July 25, 2026)

You are rarely the driver

Whether you were on foot, in a cab, or on a bike

The same 122 line and the same foreign-related handling apply however you were caught in the accident.

Hit as a pedestrian

Crossing on foot is where most visitors meet traffic. If a vehicle hits you, the road-accident rules still apply: get out of danger, call 120 if you are hurt and 122 for the traffic police, and stay for the report.

In a taxi or DiDi

As a passenger you are a party to the accident too. The driver will usually deal with the traffic police, but make sure the crash is reported on 122, keep the trip record from the app, and get a translator if you cannot follow what is said.

Riding a shared bike or e-bike

E-bikes and shared bikes put you in the traffic flow. The same 122 line and the same foreign-related handling under Order No. 146 apply; do not ride off after a collision, because leaving a crash you were in can count against you.

The published facts

What Chinese law actually says about your accident

Each fact links the official source and the day we read it. Sources read 2026-07-25.

122 is the road-accident line, from two official lists

The FCDO 'getting help' page lists Traffic Police as 122, and the Australian Embassy publishes the same number under the plain-English label 'Traffic Accident Reports'. If anyone is injured, 120 for an ambulance is the other number to dial.

Source: UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office — Foreign travel advice: China — Getting help (read July 25, 2026)

The traffic police must tell you your rights

Under the Ministry of Public Security's Order No. 146, when handling a foreigner's road traffic accident the traffic-management department shall inform the party of the rights and obligations that Chinese law, regulations and rules give a party in the handling of an accident. Other foreign-related-case rules apply on top of the general procedure.

Article 96

You can be barred from leaving China while a case is open

The same regulation says a foreigner involved in a road traffic accident is not permitted to exit China if they are suspected of a crime, if a court has decided to bar exit over an unresolved accident-damages case, or in other circumstances barred by law. This is the consequence a visitor most needs to know before treating a crash as something to walk away from.

Article 97

A translator must be provided if you do not speak Chinese

In handling the accident the traffic-management department uses the common spoken and written language of China. For a party who does not understand Chinese it shall provide translation, and — with the department's approval — a foreigner may hire their own translator at their own expense.

Article 99

In short

Road-accident questions travellers ask

Which number, whether they speak English, and the exit-ban question that surprises people.

What number do I call for a car or road accident in China?

122, the traffic police. Both the UK FCDO and the Australian Embassy list 122 as the road-accident line, and the embassy labels it 'Traffic Accident Reports'. If anyone is injured, also call 120 for an ambulance.

Will 122 answer in English?

No opened official source promises the three-digit lines answer English, so treat 122 as Chinese-first. Have a translation app ready or ask a Chinese speaker to place the call. Once the traffic police are handling the accident, the regulation requires them to provide a translator for a party who does not speak Chinese.

I was hit as a pedestrian, not driving. Do the same rules apply?

Yes. The road-traffic-accident procedure applies to anyone who is a party to the accident, not only the driver. Get out of danger, call 120 if you are hurt and 122 for the traffic police, and stay for the report.

Can I be stopped from leaving China after an accident?

Yes, in defined cases. Ministry of Public Security Order No. 146 says a foreigner involved in a road traffic accident may be barred from exit if they are suspected of a crime, if a court has decided to bar exit over an unresolved accident-damages case, or where other law bars it. For a serious crash, sort the case out before you plan to fly home.

Do I have to stay at the scene?

Treat staying as the safe course. The traffic police run the handling of the accident, and because a foreigner can be barred from leaving China while a serious case is unresolved, leaving the scene of a crash you were part of is not something this guide can recommend. Get out of live traffic, but stay until the police have what they need.

The other party wants to settle in cash on the spot. Should I?

This guide cannot confirm from an opened official source how a foreign visitor should handle an on-the-spot cash settlement, so it does not tell you to accept or refuse one. What is officially sourced is that the traffic-management department handles the accident, must inform you of your rights, and must provide a translator — so let them run it and make sure anything agreed is on the record.

Not confirmed

What no opened source would let us say

The on-the-scene details and English-line claims we could not source from a page we opened are printed here rather than asserted.

No source opened for this guide states that 122 (or 110 or 120) answers English. Treat the three-digit lines as Chinese-first and line up a translator or a Chinese speaker; the officially-sourced English route is that the traffic police must provide a translator once they are handling the accident, plus your own embassy.
The exact on-the-scene checklist a visitor should follow — whether to move vehicles, how a minor no-injury bump is settled, or whether a cash settlement is wise — is not spelled out for foreigners on any official page opened here. This guide asserts only what Order No. 146 and the two emergency-number lists actually say, and flags the rest rather than inventing a procedure.
Order No. 146's exit-bar provision (Article 97) is stated as the regulation frames it — suspected crime, an unresolved damages case a court has barred exit over, or other legal grounds. It is not a claim that every accident bars exit; most minor accidents will not.

All the emergency numbers

110, 120, 119, 122 from two official lists — and the honest answer on which line speaks English.

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If you are ill or injured

Finding care, the international clinics, and what a foreign visitor pays up front.

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If you were robbed

Reporting a theft and getting the police report your insurer needs before it pays.