Motor vehicles crashes have increased immensely over the years resulting in significant injuries and death. 75% involve only property damage. 25%, however, involve personal injury to the driver or passengers and out of that number, 2 out of every 10 accidents lead to fatal injuries. In fact, 1.35 million people die in car accidents worldwide every year and is the 8th leading cause of death for people globally. The biggest culprit is distracted drives making up 25-50% of all crashes.
Accidents happen, even to careful drivers. In the days following the adrenaline wears off and you are left with pain, shock and sometimes a loss of memory. The post-accident process is fairly straightforward, but it is not always easy. If you are involved in a car accident in which you suffered and injury, here are a few tips to help protect your interests:
- Stop at the accident scene
- Stay calm and make sure you are OK
- Call the police and report what happened
- Obtain insurance information from all parties involved including policy information
- Take pictures and video of the vehicles involved and scene of the accident
- Prepare a DMV form and report the accident
- Immediately seek medical attention for a full evaluation
Keep a file of all the information you obtain. As time passes, people often forget the details of what transpired. Sometimes even keeping a journal can help jog your memory of what occurred. This information is also helpful if you assert a claim against the responsible party.
Similar to what you should do, there are several things you MUST NOT do when involved in a car accident.
- Never leave the scene without first speaking to the police. If you are responsible for the accident and you flee the scene, you could be criminally prosecuted.
- Never forget to exchange insurance information. After an accident it is common to feel clouded and forget information. Since most accidents are routinely handled through insurance companies, you will need this information to report the incident and pursue a claim.
- Never underestimate your damages as some damages may not present for days or weeks. Once the shock wears off, your body is trained to start “feeling” the effects of the crash. Some injuries are internal and need proper evaluation. If you wait, the grave consequences of an injury you can’t see could be life threatening if not fatal.
- Never admit fault as you are not a trained legal professional and the law is gray. Anything you say after an accident can be used against you. That means you should not talk directly with any insurance company without first speaking with a lawyer. It is best to let your lawyer do all the talking.
- Never fail to gather photographs and other evidence. You will never have the chance again to get evidence as fresh as it is on the date of the accident. It will be your best chance of success if you document everything that happened at the scene both for yourself and your attorney.
Most important, talk to a lawyer about your rights after an accident. You must be completely honest with the attorney so they are arms with all the information to assist you in your case—“The good, the bad and the ugly.” Your attorney can make sure valuable evidence is not destroyed and help guide you through the legal process as well as treatment regimens. Your attorney has the education and experience to make this most tragic evident something easier to manage so you can focus on your health. Personal injury attorneys will work on a contingency fee basis, which means there is no legal fee unless the attorney recovers money for your injuries.
Insurance companies are guided to make money and not to make friends. They don’t make money when they pay money to you and will do anything they can to avoid paying you money. Sometimes pretending to be concerned and getting admissions is a way they can save top dollar or even prevent you from obtain just compensation. Most people are not prepared for the trickeries that insurance companies play to avoid paying a fair amount for injuries caused by car accidents. Also, they are not there to guide you on your rights and time to make claims, which could prevent you from recoveries all together through simple delay. Talking to a lawyer immediately following an accident will give you comfort that you are not alone and will help you fight the fight against those seeking to limit you on your road to recovery.