What to Do in the Event of an Accident

There are several things that will strengthen your claim in the event of a collision. These simple steps should be shared with family members and friends to help them overcome many of the objections and hurdles we will see in the course of the case when the claim is eventually brought.
First, get all health care you may possibly need as soon as possible. Go to the emergency room and tell the doctors everything that is wrong with you so a record can be made. For example, if you have shoulder pain, tell them about the shoulder pain even though the shoulder pain may not be the most painful part of your injuries.
Second, obtain photographs of everything, the accident scene, the damage that was done to your car and to the other person’s car, any visible injuries to your body. Don’t rely upon your insurance company to take adequate photos of the property damage. The property damage is often very important to help document and/or explain the extent of the forces involved in the crash. The extent of the property damage is important to the bodily injury claim as well as dealing with the issues related to the property damages alone. Also, take photographs of any bruises, cuts or scrapes you may have. A picture is often worth a thousand words and most cuts and bruises heal making pictures later a moot point.
Third, as you deal with your doctors and physicians, aggressively seek treatment. If you try to put it off and wait, you may develop a gap in treatment which is often difficult for us to overcome in explaining the extent of your injuries either to the insurance company or to the jury. The longer you wait for treatment the more difficult it is to get anyone to believe that it is due to the automobile collision.
Fourth, seek legal counsel. Quickly! The sooner you get an attorney involved, the sooner your claim will be documented and persevered and indicate a message to the insurance company that you are aggressive about your claim and are willing to pursue the matter as needed. Claimants who wait many many months before obtaining legal counsel send a message to the insurance company that they are not aggressive and serious about their case and they tend to get lower offers for settlement. Make no mistake; you will need an attorney to effectively pursue your claim. Although it is possible to obtain a settlement without an attorney in the vast majority of cases, you are far better off with legal counsel.

This article was orginally published in the bi-monthly newsletter BackTalk, and was written by Bryan A. Larson esq.