If you have ever been involved in a car accident, or witnessed one, you know the go-to emotions: fear, panic, even hysteria.
Here is the challenge: it’s hard to pull yourself together after a car accident, but those initial, post-accident moments are critical for many different reasons. The most important reason is your health. If you have been injured, you need to get help before things could get worse.
Another reason is to protect your rights. If you were injured by the negligence of another driver, then you are legally entitled to compensation for your injuries. However, doing or saying the wrong thing after an accident can potentially jeopardize that compensation.
To help you do the right thing in the aftermath of a car accident, our team of Salt Lake City car accident attorneys have compiled a list of the steps you should take before you leave the scene of a car accident.
1. Stay Safe
By far the most important thing you should do after an accident is to stay safe. If your car is movable make sure to move it out of the road so that you are not hit by a second vehicle. If your car is not functional, then get out of the vehicle and get yourself and your passengers to safety on the side of the road.
2. Assess Your Condition
Do a self assessment of your condition and the condition of your passengers to see if anyone sustained injuries from the crash. You should also try to check on the condition of the passengers of any other vehicle that was involved, as well as any other pedestrians that were affected by the crash.
If you or anyone else in the crash has been injured you need to seek medical attention immediately. A doctor will be able to evaluate your injuries and help you create a treatment plan for your injuries, and get you started on your road to recovery.
3. Call the Police
Whether or not anyone has been injured, the police should always be called to the scene of the accident. When the police arrive at a car accident it is their duty to create a police report, which is essential to a personal injury claim.
The police will go about the accident scene and collect key evidence, document the damage to the vehicles as well as the injuries to anyone involved, and determine who was at fault in the accident. They can gather witnesses and even give a ticket to the party that is at fault (which can be strong evidence in your personal injury claim).
4. Exchange Information
With all of the drivers involved, you will need to gather certain information before you leave. Make sure you collect the following information from everyone involved as it can be crucial for your Salt Lake City car accident lawyer or insurance company later:
- The license plate numbers of all vehicles involved
- The names of the other driver(s) and other occupants
- Make, model, and year of the other vehicles involved
- The location of the crash
- Insurance information of the other driver(s)
- Photos of license plates and drivers licenses
- Name and badge number of the officers that arrived at the scene
- Contact information from anyone who may have witnessed the crash
5. Gather Your Own Evidence
You can trust the police to do their job, but you should always gather enough information to support your claims too. Make sure that you document the scene of the crash thoroughly. You can do this by pulling out your phone and taking photos and videos of the accident from as many angles as possible. You can deliver this (along with the information you gathered in step five) to your Salt Lake City car accident lawyer, who will be very grateful for the help. Your evidence may help fill in any holes in the police report.
6. Watch What You Say
It is very easy to get caught up in the moment after an accident. With adrenaline coursing through your body it is easy to say something you might not actually mean, including accidentally taking the blame for the crash by apologizing to others. Anything that you say will be able to be used against you, so try your best to not accept any blame for the accident.
Do not take the blame when speaking with anyone after leaving the scene either. It is best to let your car accident attorney talk to the insurance company. They are familiar with all of the tactics of Big Insurance and will safeguard your personal injury case.
7. Plan To Seek Medical Treatment
You may want to leave the scene and pretend like this whole terrifying ordeal never happened, but you should make plans to see a doctor—even if you aren’t experiencing any major symptoms. Health issues like traumatic brain injury or whiplash may not show up at first, but a doctor may be able to help you recognize them and avoid worsening the condition. Delaying medical treatment may make it harder to recover. Where your legal case is concerned, delaying could make it more difficult to connect your injuries with the car accident.
After the Accident
Once you leave the scene of the crash your work is not done, you will need to stay on top of a few more things:
- File an Insurance Claim. As soon as possible, file a claim with your insurance provider. The process may be lengthy but stay on top of providing all the information that they adjuster will ask for. You can dispute their valuations of the car’s damages if you feel it is too low. Just be prepared to gather your own estimates for comparison. Your car accident attorney can also complete this step for you.
- Contact an Auto Accident Attorney. Insurance companies will do everything in their power to deny and minimize your claims. Because they are good at what they do, an insurance adjuster could keep you from getting the compensation you deserve, if you do not have a qualified attorney to act as your advocate.
- Document Your Health Concerns, Medical Treatments, and Expenses. Keep track of your property damage, medical bills, travel to medical appointments, medication costs, and missed work days. It is a good idea to get a journal to help document the events surrounding the accidents and how your health improves or worsens from day to day. Strong cases are built on evidence. The more you can provide to your attorney, the better off you’ll be.
- Stay Consistent With Your Medical Treatment: It will not look good for your personal injury case if your doctor diagnoses you with neck or back strain and you fail to follow up with the recommended therapies. Show that you’re committed to getting better by following your doctor’s orders.
While panic is a natural emotion after a car accident, do your best to work through these seven steps and you will be much better off. If you can’t calm yourself down, arrange for a loved one or a friend to meet you at the crash to help you navigate these steps.
If you do end up in a car accident, you do not have to suffer alone. Give the best Salt Lake City car accident lawyers a call at LifeLaw Trial Attorneys. Our team of car accident attorneys have helped hundreds of clients get the help they need after a car accident. Let us work on your case so that you can focus on what is really important, your recovery. Give the LifeLaw Trial Lawyers team a call at 801-206-4002 for a free consultation and to get the help you deserve!
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