Every fall we get the same run of calls, and they cluster in the same weeks. A driver on M-40 north of Paw Paw at 6:30 in the morning. Someone on CR-215 outside Lawton just after dusk. A pickup on M-43 heading toward Bangor with a caved-in front end and coolant on the pavement.
Michigan records tens of thousands of deer-vehicle crashes a year, and they are not spread evenly across the calendar. They climb hard through October and November during the rut, when deer move more and pay less attention to roads. Van Buren County — wooded lots, orchards, creek bottoms, and a lot of unlit two-lane road — is exactly the kind of country where it happens.
Arndt’s Towing & Recovery is based in Paw Paw and runs these roads all year. Here is what actually matters in the first ten minutes, and how to tell whether your car is safe to drive home.
Do Not Swerve
This is the hardest advice to follow and the most important. The instinct when a deer steps into your headlights is to jerk the wheel. Most of the serious injuries in deer crashes do not come from hitting the deer. They come from what the car hits afterward — a tree, a ditch, an oncoming vehicle.
Brake hard, stay in your lane, and keep both hands on the wheel. A deer strike at highway speed will do real damage to your vehicle. Leaving the road at highway speed does far worse.
Two other things worth knowing out here. Deer travel in groups, so if one crosses, slow down and expect more. And dawn and dusk are when the risk peaks, which in November means both your morning and evening commute.
The First Ten Minutes
- Get off the roadway if the car still moves. On a dark stretch of M-40 or M-51, a stopped car with no lights is the next crash waiting to happen. Hazards on immediately.
- Check everyone in the vehicle. Adrenaline masks injury. If anyone is hurt, call 911 first and let the medical side lead.
- Stay away from the deer. An injured deer is large, panicked, and dangerous. Do not approach it, and do not try to move it out of the road yourself.
- Call it in. Report the crash to law enforcement. You will generally need a report for your insurance claim, and if the animal is still in the roadway it is a hazard to everyone behind you.
- Photograph everything before anything moves — the damage, the position of the vehicle, the road, the animal. Your insurer will want it.
If you want to keep the deer, ask the responding officer. Michigan allows salvage of road-killed deer, but there is an authorization process and the officer or the DNR is the right source on how it works in your situation. Do not just load it in the truck bed and hope.
Is It Safe to Drive Home? Usually Less Safe Than It Looks
This is where people get themselves into a second, more expensive problem. The car starts, it drives, so they head for home — and turn a body repair into an engine replacement.
Do not drive it if you see any of the following:
- Fluid on the ground. Green or orange is coolant, and a deer strike very often pushes the radiator or condenser back into the fan. Driving without coolant will cook the engine in a few miles.
- The temperature gauge climbing. Same problem, one step further along.
- The hood not latching properly. A hood that pops open at 55 mph on I-94 is a serious problem.
- Headlights pointed at the trees or the pavement. On unlit rural roads at night, that alone is enough reason to stop.
- Deployed airbags. The car is not safe to drive and needs to be towed.
- Steering that pulls, or new noises from a wheel. Suspension and steering damage is common on a corner strike.
- Body panels or bumper contacting a tire. That will shred a tire fast.
- Fluid smell, smoke, or anything electrical acting strangely.
When you call us, tell the dispatcher what you are seeing. If it rolls and steers it is a straightforward tow. If it went off into a ditch or a field edge, that is a winch-out and we bring different gear.
Where the Deer Are Around Here
After enough years running this county you learn where the calls come from.
- M-40 north and south of Paw Paw — wooded stretches with fields on both sides and very little lighting.
- M-43 toward Bangor and South Haven — heavy cover close to the shoulder in places.
- M-51 around Decatur and Lawrence.
- County roads through the orchards and vineyards around Lawton and Mattawan. Deer feed in the orchards and cross at first light.
- The Kal-Haven Trail corridor and the creek bottoms near Bloomingdale and Gobles — natural travel routes for deer, which means natural crossing points.
- I-94 through the county — less frequent than the two-lanes, but far more serious when it happens because of the speed involved.
How the Insurance Side Usually Works
One piece of good news. In most policies, hitting an animal falls under comprehensive coverage rather than collision. That distinction matters because comprehensive claims are generally treated differently from at-fault collision claims, and the deductible is often lower.
That said, Michigan auto insurance is its own world and coverage varies a great deal between policies. If you carry liability only, animal damage is typically not covered at all. Call your agent and ask specifically how your policy handles it — ideally before deer season rather than during it.
We provide itemized receipts for the tow so you have what you need for the claim, and we work with insurance carriers regularly.
Towed to a Shop, Not Just a Lot
Here is where being local actually helps you. A lot of tow operators move your car to a storage yard and hand you a receipt. Then you spend two days calling around while storage fees add up.
We run a full-service auto and truck repair shop on site with ASE-certified mechanics and computer diagnostics. On a deer strike that means we can tow it in and look at what is actually wrong — cooling system, suspension, steering, electrical — instead of you waiting on a diagnosis from somewhere else.
And if the damage is beyond what makes sense to repair, we will tell you that plainly rather than running up a bill.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to report hitting a deer in Michigan?
Report it if anyone is injured or there is significant property damage, and in practice you will want a report for your insurance claim regardless. If the animal is blocking a lane, call it in so the next driver does not hit it.
My car still drives. Do I really need a tow?
If there is fluid on the ground, a rising temperature gauge, a hood that will not latch, or airbag deployment, yes. A radiator pushed into the fan is the most common hidden deer-strike damage, and driving on it turns a body repair into an engine job.
Can you get to me on a back road at 5am?
Yes. We dispatch 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and we are based in Paw Paw rather than driving out from Kalamazoo or Benton Harbor.
What if my car ended up in the ditch?
That is a winch-out rather than a straight tow. Tell the dispatcher when you call so the right truck and rigging come out the first time.
Can you give me and my family a ride?
In most local situations, yes. Tell the dispatcher how many people are with you and whether there are pets or car seats.
Hit a Deer Near Paw Paw? Call Us.
Front end caved in on M-40. Off the shoulder into a ditch on a county road outside Lawton. Radiator dumping coolant on the pavement on M-43 at 5am in November.
Licensed, insured, family owned, dispatched by people who live here — with flatbeds, wheel-lifts, winch-out gear, and a repair shop at the other end.
Call Arndt’s Towing & Recovery 24/7 at (269) 655-4123, or get in touch here. We’re at 43910 30th St, Paw Paw, MI 49079.
Learn more about our vehicle recovery, flatbed towing, and 24/7 roadside assistance.
This article is general information, not medical, legal, or insurance advice. If anyone is injured in a crash, seek qualified medical attention, and confirm coverage details with your own insurer.