First 5 Things You Should Do After A Car Accident

It’s easy to forget to protect yourself after an accident. You might be understandably shocked or scared, but you need to try. The first thing you need to do is to make sure you are unhurt, and when you are, you need to get checked immediately.

Next, you also need to think about the possible financial consequences you will have to deal with. You need to pay for your medical bills, address property damage, and the income you’ll lose for temporarily (or permanently) being unable to work.

That said, here are the first 5 things you need to do to make sure the fallout isn’t as difficult for you:

Step #1: As soon as possible, get medical assistance.

Even if you don’t think you were hurt in the crash, you should seek medical attention as quickly as possible. Because certain fractures and bruises aren’t always visible right away, finding a medical specialist to examine your current state is the best way to go.

In addition, any injuries should be documented in medical records. Having them on file will make locating documentation of the injuries for insurance and personal injury claims much more manageable.

Waiting a few days may cause some of your injuries to heal, making it more challenging to establish the extent of the losses you suffered in the incident.

 

Step #2: Have your testimony documented on a police report.

Remember to file a police report of the occurrence while we’re on the subject of documentation. This is yet another technique to save the accident reports, which will come in helpful if you ever need them as evidence.

These police records will become public after some time. You will be able to request a copy of these records from the police station or have one obtained for you by your Personal Injury Attorney.

Once you’ve received your copy, go over the report’s specifics. Look for any inconsistencies or things that have been left out.

 

Step #3: Obtain contact details and insurance information from those who are involved in the situation.

Obtain the insurance details, name, and driver’s license number of the other driver. It will be easier (and faster) to contact their insurance provider if you do this. Furthermore, having the other driver’s information will make it easier for your California Personal Injury Lawyer to examine your claim if you need to file a Personal Injury Claim.

Don’t forget to acquire all witnesses’ names, phone numbers, and other contact information. Their evidence will be helpful when it comes time to submit your Personal Injury Claim.

 

Step #4: Take pictures of the situation.

This is yet another approach to keep track of the accident’s details. Take photographs of the damaged property, your injuries, road signs, road conditions, the other driver’s vehicle, and any other details you think are important in the context of the accident.

You’ll never know if a third-party inquiry leaves something out or overlooks something in their reports. However, these may be useful to your California Car Accident Attorney as they look for evidence.

 

Step #5: Don’t try to negotiate with insurance companies on your own.

The unpleasant reality is that insurance companies are, at the end of the day, a business. It is in their best interests for them to pay you as little as possible because this is how they keep their profits. They may try to trivialize the severity of your injuries, mislead you about the accident scene, or shift some of the blame to you in order to accomplish this.

Most people who have been in a car accident before understand how stressful it can be. On top of a potential insurance claim disagreement, victims must still worry about their health and costs. As a result, victims will sometimes accept an unreasonably low settlement just to get it over with.

You should have a Car Accident Lawyer to help you negotiate the conditions instead of slipping into this trap. Having an attorney write an appeal letter to the insurance company can sometimes be enough to get them to agree to larger payouts.