Being in a car accident can be one of the most disruptive events of your life. You never expect it but when a negligent driver hits your car with his or her, life changes.
On impact and in fractions of a second your body is subjected to immediate stress and is injured. Your car also suffers “injuries”, property damage to the interior and exterior of the car.
Since most people are not involved in car accidents, they do not know where to start. Of course, as car accident personal injury attorneys in Washington DC, we want you to contact us to help you navigate the maze of the personal injury case.
However, we have compiled a list of 5 very important tasks that should be considered immediately and carried out if you find yourself in an accident:
1: SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION IMMEDIATELY
Depending on how severe your injuries are, you should visit a medical provider on the same day as your accident. Serious bodily injuries warrant an immediate emergency visit. When you arrive, show your health insurance card and your car insurance. If you don’t have any, don’t worry. We are ready to help you.
2: TAKE PHOTO AND VIDEO OF THE CAR ACCIDENT SCENE
This advice seems obvious but too many people have forgotten to do this. You should always take a photo or video of the car or truck that hit you along with the brand (and any symbols of the car). Take photos of the damage to your car and any visible bodily damage.
Take a video of the crash site where everyone’s car is visible and record the testimony of a witness. Also, check if there are cameras in a business near or on the corner of a street.
3: FIND WITNESSES AND SAVE THEIR DATA
Believe it or not, even when it is obvious who caused the accident, as at-fault drivers they are notorious for changing the culprit. That is why obtaining the name and number of any witnesses is critical to helping your personal injury car accident attorney in the fight.
4: GET THE INFORMATION FROM THE GUILTY DRIVER
Typically, the police will show up immediately after a car accident and gather personal data from everyone and the cars. This information is critical to filing bodily injury charges on time with the at-fault driver’s bodily injury insurance coverage. If the police fail to show up at the scene of the car accident, be sure to take photos of the at-fault driver’s license plates, auto insurance card and driver’s license.
5: TOW YOUR CAR HOME
Try to always have your car towed to your house. Avoid being taken to a tow yard. As soon as your car is in the tow yard, it’s like a car graveyard. Daily charges begin to accumulate. If you don’t get your car out on time, they’ll auction it off. Dealing with towing companies can be an absolute nightmare.
If you can drive your car, take it home immediately and try not to use it again until a property damage estimate is made. Commonly insurance damage evaluators try to turn you around when they find out that you are driving the damaged car.
CONCLUSION
Above are the 5 things you should do after a car accident, but don’t do it alone. Your insurance company and the at-fault driver’s insurance company are not your friends. They will see for their interests and not yours.
In Washington DC, We are personal injury trial attorneys and will take cases before a jury of your peers. Insurance companies take us very seriously and that helps us fight to obtain the maximum possible compensation for our clients.
Contact us for a free and confidential consultation to discuss your car accident personal injury claim. It costs you nothing to hire us. We will be compensated only if you are compensated.
