If you get injured in a Car Accident, You Should Follow These Steps

Owning a car is an incredible luxury that millions of people get to do in the United States. It gives you the freedom to drive wherever you want whenever you want without needing to rely on public transportation, rideshare services, or lifts from other people. However, with so many cars on the road, it is no surprise that car accidents are consistently the most common type of personal injury. As with all types of personal injuries, it is wise to hire an attorney to help you with your settlement for an injury suffered during a car accident. Here at Page & Eichenblatt, our personal injury attorneys work with people who have suffered injuries during car accidents that they didn’t cause. Today we wanted to discuss what you should do if you are injured during an auto accident.

Call the Police and File for a Police Report

As soon as your accident occurs, you should call the police, or call for emergency services if you are seriously injured. When you call law enforcement, they will make a thorough police report of the incident. This is so crucial because police reports are filed immediately after the incident and they are a trusted form of evidence in court that judges will use for determining liability. The report usually details who is involved, who is likely at fault, what the damages are, what the injuries are, and they will try to interview any reliable witnesses at the scene. This report will be a golden ticket for you if you need to take the matter to court to be compensated for your damages or injuries.

Once the Report is Completed, Talk to the Witnesses

While the police report will likely contain the witnesses’ names and statements, it may not contain all of their contact information. Witnesses can play a key role in a courtroom for helping to reinforce who has liability per what they witnessed at the scene. If you can speak to the witnesses yourself, get their contact information. This can also help when making a claim with your insurance company.

Get Medical Treatment Immediately after the Accident

According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, there were more than two million injured persons in motor vehicle crashes in 2020 out of about five million crashes, meaning about two out of every five crashes resulted in an injury. If you sustain a personal injury during a car crash, it is important to seek treatment right away for medical reasons and so the injury does not get any worse. However, it is also an important part of being compensated for a personal injury is being able to prove that you sustained an injury per your medical records. If you get help immediately, it helps to reinforce the fact that your injury was a result of the car accident. If you wait too long, it may not be easy to prove that the injury was a result of the accident. Also, be sure to take follow-up medical appointments as necessary and to keep a journal of the progress of your injury. This will help you from forgetting any details of the extent of your injury.

Avoid Giving Statements to Insurance Companies

Insurance companies can also be difficult to please and if you don’t get medical treatment for your injuries immediately following the accident, they often argue that your injuries were not a result of the crash or that you only sought out help because a lawyer told you to do so. Seeking out medical help right away can help you medically, legally, and financially. If an insurance company does contact you after the accident, then do not give them a statement. Even if they pose it as though they want to help you, they are usually trying to get a statement before you’ve had time to contact an attorney to use against you later on so that they don’t have to pay you as much.

Suffer a Personal Injury during a Car Accident? Call Us!

The last step to take is to hire an experienced personal injury lawyer. While insurance companies often work against you, your attorney will be in your corner working vigorously to help you get the justice and compensation that you deserve as a result of the accident. Give Page & Eichenblatt, P.A. a call at (407) 386-1900 or use our form to submit a request to receive a free case evaluation from us. For more than 25 years we have been helping folks who have been the victims of car accidents and other personal injury accidents to receive a fair settlement.