Emergency numbers and help in Costa Rica

The numbers

• 911 works nationwide, free from any phone, and reaches police, ambulance and fire.
• Operators generally speak English, which is unusual in the region and worth knowing.
• The Policia Turistica is a real unit stationed in the main tourist towns, and they deal with visitor problems specifically.

After a theft

• File a report (denuncia) at the OIJ, the judicial investigation police, not at an ordinary station, if you need it for insurance.
• There is an OIJ office at SJO airport, which is convenient if the theft happens at the end of a trip.
• Cancel cards immediately.
• A stolen passport means the OIJ first, then your embassy, most of which are in Escazu or Rohrmoser in San Jose.
• You need a police report and an exit permit from Migracion to leave the country on an emergency travel document.

Medical

• Ask for a private hospital. CIMA in Escazu, Clinica Biblica and Hospital Metropolitano are the ones foreign insurers know.
• Public emergency care is available to anyone through the CCSS and is free at the point of need in a genuine emergency.
• Have your insurer's 24 hour line to hand, because remote evacuation from Osa or Tortuguero is by boat or light aircraft and needs authorising.

On the road

• After a road accident, do not move the vehicles until the traffic police arrive. Costa Rican law requires it and your rental insurance depends on it.
• Call 911 and your rental company, in that order.
• The INS insurance adjuster attends and issues the report the rental company needs.

Worth saving now

• A Waze pin or GPS coordinates for your accommodation, because there is no address to give.
• Your insurer's assistance number and policy number.
• Costa Rica's country code is +506, and numbers are eight digits with no area code.
• Your embassy's out-of-hours number.