Always Do These Things After An Auto Accident
Posted on: 23 June 2023
An auto accident could leave you with property damage to your vehicle and bodily injury to yourself or your loved ones. While your first course of action after a serious accident should be to call for medical attention if needed, there are a number of other things you should do immediately after you get your wits about you. Here's how to make sure you get the information you need to protect your legal rights.
Contact the Police
To get an official record of the accident, you will need to contact the police and ask for a police report to be filed. It's not enough to just assume the other party will repeat to their insurer what they are telling you on the scene. Someone's story could change after the fact or someone could decide they do have an injury later on, like if they wake up the next day with soreness. A police report ensures an account is made on the day of, and having this official report on your side can keep everyone honest later on.
Exchange Information
After the initial call to the police or medical authorities is made, you should exchange information with the other party if possible. Exchange insurance information and driver's license info such as the person's name.
Take Photos or Video
If you are able to move around freely at the scene and without risk of further injury to anyone, try and get some photos or video of the accident scene. Photograph your vehicle and the other party's. Try to get a photo or video of the angle or direction in which you were driving and the direction of the other driver, including any nearby landmarks or street names.
Contact Your Insurance
You should contact your own insurance agency and let them know you were in an accident. You may be asked to give an account of what happened. If you are not at fault, it might be OK to do this, but make sure you write down exactly what you said so there is no confusion later on.
Consider Hiring a Lawyer
If you believe this accident could end up in a courtroom at some point, you will want to hire a lawyer as soon as possible. In fact, you may want to hire that lawyer even before contacting your own insurer. Let your lawyer do all of the talking to the insurance companies and the other party. Your lawyer can also help you gather evidence after the fact if needed.
For more information, visit a site like https://www.bangelaw.com/.
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