You take your personal safety seriously. You are especially careful on the road. You are cautious and alert when driving. You are not one to take chances by speeding, running through stop signs, or making abrupt turns. These are common sense habits that most drivers share. Unfortunately, there are people who believe the rules don’t apply to them. They take risks that put themselves and others in danger. If you have been in a collision with such a driver, you should learn about and defend your rights. Hiring a car accident personal injury lawyer can help.
The Actions to Take After an Accident
Colliding with another vehicle is probably the last thing you think about when you leave home in the morning. However, you must be prepared for this possibility. It is important to have presence of mind after a car accident. Acting promptly and correctly will ensure that you minimize the fallout of an unfortunate event. Here are some of things that you must do following a car accident
1. Stay at the Scene
You must wait for the police to arrive. Once they take your statement, they will release you. Do not leave the scene, as doing so is against the law.
2. Check Yourself for Injuries
Just because you feel no pain doesn’t mean you are uninjured. The human body can respond to shock by going numb. You should use your hands to check for excessive bleeding or broken bones.
3. Call Emergency Services
You should do this immediately. Be sure to answer the operator’s questions with clarity and precision.
4. Get Driver Info
You and the other driver will undoubtedly approach each other. The only words you need exchange are those related to contact details and insurance information. You need not get into fault. You should in fact say nothing about it. This is the simplest way to keep the peace.
5. Speak to Eyewitnesses
You should speak to people who witnessed the accident. One or two of them will be eager to speak to you. You should welcome this and get down as much of their story as possible. Do not part ways until you have taken down their contact details.
6. Go to the Hospital
No matter your state of feeling, you will need to go to the hospital. You will need to do so for two main reasons. First, you need to document your physical and mental condition after the accident for insurance purposes. Second, you have no way of knowing whether you received internal injuries unless you have yourself checked out by a medical professional. If the accident left you with cuts and abrasions, then you should photograph them before they are treated.
7. Document Everything
You should not leave the hospital without hard copies of the initial examination and course of treatment you received. You should also record your own memories of how the accident happened.
8. Contact an Attorney
You should contact an attorney immediately. Indeed, a car accident attorney in Los Angeles should be the first person you speak to outside of your family. You should speak to your attorney before you file an insurance claim or have any contact with your insurance company. They will advise you of your rights and help walk you through next steps. It is important to remember that your insurance company is not on your side; they are interested only in minimizing the amount of money they must pay out.
Why You Need an Attorney
If the other driver is found to have caused the accident, then their insurance company will need to settle with you. They will offer you a low-dollar figure. Do not accept it. In fact, you should have no direct dealings with the other driver’s insurance company. You should refer them to your attorney. This will prevent confusion and will stop you from saying anything that might weaken your position.
If you hire the best personal injury lawyer, they will have the experience and knowledge to tell a good deal from a bad one. If you have sustained relatively light injuries and the insurers offer you a sum of money that covers your hospital bills and missed wages, then your attorney may advise you to accept it. If the accident was severe and left you with serious injuries, then your attorney will demand more money. If the insurers refuse, then you will need to sue them.
The Impact of a Serious Injury
The fallout from a car accident can throw your life into tumult. If you are seriously injured in such an accident, you will need to undergo a series of medical procedures that will cost money. You will not be able to earn anything while you are laid up in the hospital; and even when you are released, it may be some time before you are well enough to work. This can put you in a stressful situation. Your predicament will be even more difficult if you sustained a permanent disability as a result of the accident.
A permanent disability may force you out of your job; it may compel you to give up your livelihood altogether. You may need to make expensive alterations to your home to get around it and you may require the services of a full-time care professional.
You should not have to deal with everything on your own. The insurance company of the driver whose recklessness caused your injuries should share the financial burden.
What Your Attorney Will Do
If you hire the best personal injury lawyer, they will dedicate their talents and energies to getting you justice. A car accident attorney in Los Angeles will know how to use the laws of California to win your case. A car accident attorney in Los Angeles will know straightaway if you have a case against the insurance company and will pursue it vigorously until you receive the compensation you deserve.
Most insurance companies do not want to go to court. This is expensive and can lead to bad publicity for them. They will try to buy your silence by making what may seem like a generous offer. Their belief is that you have neither the patience nor financial resources to go through a trial. An experienced attorney will know how to counter such ploys. Negotiations over compensation tend to be long and protracted affairs, especially if the claimant has been badly hurt in the accident. Your lawyer must prove that you were badly injured in the accident, that the accident was the result of negligent or reckless conduct by the other driver, that the driver’s insurance company is liable, and that they must pay you a certain amount of money.
To prove the case, your attorney will send their private investigators to re-examine the evidence. Part of this re-investigation will be the re-interviewing of witnesses to the accident. The investigative team may get statements from people who were not interviewed by police. They may also get cell phone footage of the accident, which can confirm your version of events.
Your attorney will also bring in experts who can use the forensic evidence left at the scene to reconstruct the sequence of events that led to the accident. Your attorney will also bring in medical experts to explain the severity and impact of your injuries.
If you have been in a car accident, you need solid legal counsel. You should contact West Coast Trial Lawyers for additional information and Attorneys/lawyers at West Coast Trial Lawyers.
