Having an accident which impacts on your life is stressful. When you are trying to cover medical costs and need to take time off work to recover, it is important that you know what your financial options are. Personal injury attorneys help people who have been through an accident and now seek recourse from the other person who caused it. Before you meet with a personal injury attorney, there are details you need to gather so the attorney can help you with your case. These posts are all about what accident and personal injury attorneys do, what they need from you, and the different situations where using one is beneficial to your lifestyle.
Sometimes you are involved in a car accident, and you know right away that you are not at fault. For example, when someone hits you by running a red light, or when someone rear-ends you. If you know that an accident was not your fault while you are at the accident scene, there are some important things you need to do.
#1 - Place a Call to 911
First, you need to make a call to 911. You want the police to respond to the accident. This will allow the police to collect information from everyone at the scene. Calling the police will also ensure that a formal accident report is created for the accident. An accident report is important as it provides a third-party view of what happened.
#2 - Get Medical Attention
Second, it is important to get medical help after an accident. Remember, the personal injury protection you carry on your vehicle insurance is designed to provide you with medical care after you have been involved in an accident.
It is important to get medical help as soon as you can. You can get that medical help at the emergency room, urgent care, or even your own personal doctor. You want to document your injuries right away and start to establish a paper trail of your injuries.
Keep in mind that not all injuries are obvious, so you may need to go back to the doctor later on if you start to feel sore in different areas. It is better to see a doctor right away, and then have follow-up appointments, than it is to wait for the adrenaline to wear off and then go see the doctor.
#3 - Do Not Accept Responsibility
It is so important that you don't accept responsibility at the accident scene, even unintentionally. Avoid saying that you are sorry in any way, shape, or form at the accident scene. Any "sorry" that you make can easily be taken the wrong way, and can be seen as an admission of guilt. You can ask how the other driver is feeling and offer to call 911, but do not say that you are sorry for what happened. Apologizing is a normal social reaction, but in an accident situation, where it can be seen as an admission of fault, apologizing can have serious negative consequences for you.
#4 - Document Evidence
Finally, try to document what happened as much as you can. Get pictures of your car, the road, the weather, and all the nearby signs and stoplights. Get pictures of both vehicles. Get pictures of your injuries. Videos can be great as well.
You should also try to get contact information for anyone who saw what happened. Getting contact information at the scene of the accident can be much easier than trying to track down that information at a later date.
Finally, you need to contact a personal injury attorney who will work with your insurance company and the other driver who was at fault's insurance company to ensure responsibility is placed on the other driver. You can reach out to an auto accident injury lawyer in your area for more information.
Share28 October 2019
