Win a Court Case: Steps to Ensure You Get Car Accident Compensation
According to the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT), Tennessee had 175,063 car accidents during 2020. Of those accidents, 5,735 were either serious accidents or fatal ones.
If you involved in a car wreck, and you’re not at fault, you likely have a personal injury claim. Personal injury claim could mean medical bills, lost wages, permanent impairment or scarring, and other damages.
How can you be sure to prevail on your personal injury claim so you get the compensation you’re entitled to?
From the moment the accident happens until you’re paid the compensation, it’s important to be careful and thoughtful about how you proceed. Read on for the steps you should take if you’re in an auto injury accident and will need to see car accident compensation.
Keep Yourself Calm
This is a tough one, there’s no doubt. But it’s important following an auto accident that you make every effort to stay calm.
It would be natural to feel panic. Your body likely has adrenaline pumping through as a reaction to the accident. The problem with panic and hysteria is that it can mean you miss important details. Make every effort to take some deep breaths and think through how you should react.
Check for Any Injuries
An important part of staying calm is checking for injuries before anyone tries to move. You may not have immediate pain because of the shock to your system. Take your time and be thorough. Check on yourself first. Do you have any obvious injuries? Then check on your passengers, then the other vehicles if you’re able to move.
It’s important here to take it slow. Your body might not be feeling the impact of the accident just yet.
Call Police and Emergency Services
You will want to quickly call 911 and get the police and ambulance on the scene of the accident. If there are injuries, especially serious ones, you need to get medical attention as quickly as possible.
Seeking medical attention also starts the process of documenting your injuries as they relate to the accident and can be important later for compensation.
If your accident seems on the surface to be less severe, you may hear the other driver want to avoid getting the police involved. The truth is the police need to come to the scene to make a police report. Your insurance will expect this documentation.
Talk to Witnesses
Witnesses can be key to win an injury case later on. They offer a different vantage point than what you might have had as a part of the accident.
Sometimes witnesses are reluctant to talk with the police and emergency services. Some witnesses might even move before the police have the opportunity to talk with them. If you’re able, ask who was a witness and get their contact information. Your car accident attorney can talk with them later and see how they can help with your case.
Document the Scene
While the police will do a police report, often quickly snapping some photos with your phone can be important for your case later on. Again, if you’re able and it’s safe, get out your mobile phone and document what you can from the scene. Attempt to get both close-up and distance photos.
Even walk around so you can see the accident from a variety of angles. If there are any signs of damage around the cars or on the road, attempt to snap those photos too.
If you have enough time, it can be helpful later to grab a piece of paper and sketch out the accident scene and how the accident occurred. This is smart to do while the accident is fresh in your mind.
Don’t Admit to Any Form of Guilt
You probably want to avoid talking to other people at the scene of the accident. Even if you’re able to keep yourself calm and collected, not everyone may respond this way.
Whether you’re at fault for the accident or not, you don’t want to admit anything. There may be circumstances from the accident that you couldn’t see.
Once there are attorneys and insurance involved, let them work out the fault for the accident because this will be an important part of getting paid for a claim.
Collect Driver Information
The police report will include some of this information for the insurance companies. But if possible seek out contact information from the other parties involved. Avoid too much conversation when you do this.
You want:
- Your full name and phone number
- Insurance company
- Policy number
- The phone number for your insurance company
Put this information with the potential witness information for your attorney.
Call Insurance Company
You might be reluctant to contact your insurance company. Ultimately, the insurance
companies involved will be the ones paying the claims.
You should know the insurance company will often try to settle quickly, especially if they think you have a big case. They figure if they can get you to settle quickly, they can reduce their risk for a high claim.
It’s likely best to let your attorney negotiate with the insurance company.
Seek Medical Care
Often in less serious accidents, people will want to skip medical care. The truth is you might not fully recognize injuries that will later present themselves that are there as a result of the accident.
You should always seek medical care. Don’t expect much in the form of a claim if you don’t even think you need to see a doctor. Seeing a doctor in the emergency room begins the documentation process related to your injuries for the personal injury claim.
Get a Good Personal Injury Attorney
You can’t expect much from a claim without an attorney to help you. The more quickly you seek legal counsel the better. There are likely to be multiple parties involved and their insurance companies too. It can quickly get complicated.
A personal injury lawyer is experienced in how to navigate and win an injury case. Most of the time, these cases are settled before they ever get to court.
Yet, your attorney should know when is the right time to push towards a settling or heading to trial. They will also have some ideas about how to calculate the value of your claim based on your injuries, medical needs, and emotional distress.
Win a Court Case and Get the Compensation You Deserve
If you hope to win a court case that involves your accident claim, it’s important to have as much information as possible for your lawyer. No two cases are ever the same but your lawyer should know how to proceed with the case and get injury compensation for you.
If you’ve been in an accident and need an attorney, we can help. Contact us today for a free case evaluation, then we can get to work to get you the compensation you deserve.
