How To Build A Personal Injury Claim After A Car Accident

There are scores of articles that promise to make you a better and safer driver. Paying attention and avoiding distractions, avoiding excessive speeds and reckless behavior, and keeping your car in top operating shape with routine maintenance, including rotating the tires, are excellent tips.

Unfortunately, being a good driver may not be enough to protect you from the negligent and reckless motorists who cause accidents. You have the right to make a claim for compensation against an at-fault driver, but you must have evidence to prove how the other driver caused the crash and the nature and extent of the injuries you suffered as a result of it.

Building a strong personal injury claim starts at the accident scene. What you do and say in the aftermath of a car accident not only contributes toward the safety of you and other occupants of your car, but it also protects your legal rights by preserving evidence and documenting what occurred. Here are a few things that help build a strong claim for damages.

Report the accident

Shock and confusion are the normal reactions people have after a crash, so resist the temptation to immediately exit your car. Instead, take a moment to calm down and collect your thoughts as you check yourself for injuries, and then check other occupants of your car to determine if they have been injured before calling 911.

Let the 911 operator know the location of the accident and the fact that you or others have been injured. If your injuries prevent you from making the call, ask someone else to make it.

When police arrive at the scene, they will prepare an official report of the accident containing information that may help you to prove fault, including:

•         Date, time and location of the crash.
•         Names and contact information for all drivers and occupants.
•         Insurance company information for all vehicles involved in the crash.
•         Names and contact information of eyewitnesses.
•         A diagram of the collision, including position of the vehicles.
•         Description of damage to each vehicle.
•         Description of weather and road conditions at the time of the accident.

The police report includes traffic violations noted by the officers and tickets written. An officer may also include notations about possible causes of the crash based on what was observed at the scene.

Let emergency medical personnel examine you

If emergency medical personnel respond to the scene, do not decline treatment. Let them examine you and report to them every pain and symptom that you are experiencing regardless of how minor they may seem. Serious and life-threatening injuries, such as traumatic brain injury, may not produce significant symptoms until hours or days after the accident. Follow the advice of the EMTs and let them take you to the hospital if that is what they recommend.

Schedule an appointment with your health care provider as soon after the accident as possible for an evaluation of your condition and to set up a treatment plan or to continue the plan suggested for you at the hospital. It also makes it easier for your attorney to obtain medical records and other documentation of the treatment and expenses related to the injuries that you sustained in the accident.

Document the accident scene

As soon as vehicles involved in the crash get towed away or moved to the side of the road, evidence that could be useful to your attorney to prove the cause of the accident and identify the party who was at fault is lost. Photographs taken of the position of the cars, skid marks, vehicle parts and debris on the road and other evidence left from the accident preserve the scene.

If physically able to do so, use the camera on your smartphone to take photos and video of the scene before anything is moved or disturbed. Ask another person to take them for you if your injuries prevent you from doing it.

Notify your auto insurance company

The insurance company that issued the policy covering your car must be notified of the accident even though the accident was not your fault. You want to preserve your rights under the policy in case a claim is made against you or in case you need to file a claim because the at-fault driver is uninsured or underinsured.

If you live in a state with no-fault auto insurance laws, the personal injury protection coverage of your auto insurance policy is your first source for payment of medical expenses and lost wages. It may be your only source in states that restrict your right to pursue a claim for damages against an at-fault driver.

Hire an experienced personal injury attorney

After taking the initial steps to document and preserve evidence of the accident and damages caused by an at-fault party, you need an experienced personal injury attorney to handle your claim for damages. You can focus on getting the rest and treatment you need to recover from your injuries while your attorney takes on claims adjusters and defense lawyers to get you the compensation that you need and deserve.