Have you been in a car accident or head-on collision recently? Do you know what to do after the accident? We are experienced personal injury attorneys and have worked in this area of law for the past several decades, and we want to help you. Here are 10 tips on what you need to do if you have been involved in a car accident.
The presence of inattentive, careless and reckless drivers, and drivers who do not know the rules of the road and drunk drivers makes sure that car accidents are not going to stop any time soon. Car accidents happen all too frequently in Los Angeles. Even though car accidents happen at an alarming frequency, most people are not aware of the steps to take when they are involved in a car accident.
Even if you do not suffer any injuries in a car accident, it can be a frustrating and challenging ordeal. We have extensive experience as personal injury attorneys in this area of law and here is what we suggest you should do when you are involved in a car accident in Los Angeles. It’s difficult to remain focused after the accident but the steps you take immediately after will have a huge impact on your financial future including the compensation you get for your injuries, lost wages as well as medical expenses among other things.
Steps to Take after a Car Accident
Get Medical Help Immediately – When you’re in an accident, your first step should be to make sure that you and everyone in your vehicle and in other vehicles are safe. Immediately call 911 even when you can tell that nobody has suffered any kind of injury. Sometimes, injuries may take days or weeks to surface. In case you need to go to a hospital, try to keep your focus and take a moment to notice the things around you such as the number of people in the vehicle, license plate of the other vehicle and if possible, get detail
Make sure your vehicle isn’t blocking the traffic in case no one has suffered any injuries. There are many cases where people suffer injuries after they have been in an accident as other vehicles on the road are unable to see their cars.
Try to note down all the important details. Make sure you note down the license plate of the other vehicle. It will come handy in case the other driver decides to drive away. Pay attention to car parts, broken glass, skid marks and other such things as it can be important evidence for the police who will investigate the accident. If possible, you should take photos of the accident scene from as many angles as possible.
Exchange contact information with all the drivers involved in the accident but make sure you do not discuss the accident. Get all the required information that might be needed from the drivers such as their address, name, insurance company, phone numbers, or policy number as well as their insurance agent.
You should also try to get contact information of witnesses as well as passengers and vehicles. Ask them to share their phone numbers, addresses and names. Look around and see if there are any witnesses. Try to get their contact details. Their testimony can be of great help in case there is disagreement among the parties about what exactly happened at the accident scene.
Get in touch with the police. Tell them everything about the accident. However, you should never mention that you are at fault even when you think you are at fault. The police might not find you responsible for the accident after thorough investigation.
Use your cell phone or a camera to take photos of the accident scene from every angle possible. Take photographs of the damage to vehicles, the accident scene, relevant road signs, the road intersection, road conditions, people in other vehicles as well as other things that might have played a part in the accident.
Try to write down all the details as quickly as possible after the accident. Do not think that you will be able to recall the details after a few weeks and you will need these details as sometimes, it can take weeks or months to resolve these cases.
Ask for a copy of the accident report. If the sheriff’s department or police arrived at the accident scene, they will file an accident report and you should get a copy of this report. Carefully check the report for any omission of facts or errors. If you decide to hire the services of an attorney, they should be able to obtain this for you. The other option is to it get yourself from the police department or sheriff who had made the accident report at the accident scene.
Get in touch with a qualified and experienced auto accident attorney in your area. Take advantage of the free consultation as you will get to know the best course of action you should follow regarding your situation.
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