What to do when you’re the victim of a car accident:Stop. Don’t drive away from the scene of an accident. Put on your flashers or hazard lights to notify other drivers that something has happened.
Call 911 if you are involved in an automobile accident. When speaking with the 911 operator, request medical attention for you and your passengers if you think any of you may be injured. Some injuries may hurt initially or after a while of sitting waiting for the first responders to arrive on the scene. If you are unsure if you are hurt, say you are unsure instead of no. It is important for you to make sure you are safe before you move or get out of your vehicle.
If you are not injured to the extent that you cannot get out of the vehicle, get out of the vehicle safely avoiding any other vehicles that may be traveling on the roadway, and check on anyone else in any other vehicles.
When the officer arrives, provide them with all information about what happened. Do not speculate and only tell the officer what you observed or how the accident occurred to the best of your ability.
Things to do When it is Safe:
Take pictures of the vehicles with your phone or camera. Also, take pictures of the roadway, intersection or other important markers, trees or roadside obstacles, or roadway conditions that may be needed for review later. Make sure to email those pictures to yourself, another person, or the Law Office of Richard F. Matthews, Jr., LLC, in order to preserve them (in the event your phone is damaged someway).
Speak with any witnesses that may have seen what happened. Never admit if you were at fault. Make sure to write down all their contact information about what they saw and how to get in touch with them so that you and your attorney or insurance company can discuss what they saw and how the accident occurred. If you can safely do so, record them telling what they saw and how the accident occurred on a recording app on your phone.
Notify your car insurance company about the accident. You have a duty under your insurance policy to notify them promptly of an accident and to work with your insurance company as they investigate the accident. Your insurance policy likely provides coverage for different types of coverages such as covering medical bills related to the accident (medical payments coverage or commonly referred to as “Med Pay”, a rental car if your car is not able to be driven from the accident, as well as other coverages such as coverages for bodily injury claims if the at fault party does not have insurance or does not have enough insurance available to cover your claims (uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage).
Seek medical attention if you need it. After an automobile accident, some injuries do not manifest themselves until a few hours later or even within the next few days after that actual injury. Unless you are absolutely certain that you are not injured, it would be best for you to present to your doctor or to a emergency room or medical facility for examination. Vehicles these days are designed to take impacts and show little damage but even when there is minor damage to your vehicle, you can suffer serious injuries to your body, spine, neck and back.
Keep records of what is going on with your automobile accident. Get a folder and keep notes, letters, pictures, and other necessary materials relevant to the accident for you to provide to your attorney and your insurance company. You do not have to speak with the other party’s insurance company until you are ready to speak with them. However, you should make sure that you write down who calls you about the accident, what company they work for and who they represent, and their contact information so that you can get back in touch with them. If you are still hurt and they ask for your injuries or information, you can tell them that you will call them back about your case after you feel up to it. Keep the information on who has contacted you in this file so that you can refer to it and call them back as needed or provide the contact information for any persons that called you to your attorney.
Hire a Lawyer to Represent You:
Contact
The Law Office of Richard F. Matthews, Jr., LLC and speak with Matt about your accident. The insurance companies have lawyers that are reviewing your accident to see if they must pay you anything. Whether you were hit in the accident or if you were at fault, you need someone to protect your rights and interests just like the insurance companies. You must protect your legal claim and the best way to do that is to hire an attorney to make sure that you will be protected. Once you have hired an attorney, refer all calls about the accident to your attorney.
