What Are the Things That You Should Do After a Car Accident?
Car accidents are more common than what you might think and therefore there are a few things that you need to be aware of, in case you are ever involved in a car accident. No matter how good a driver you are, sometimes accidents do happen for no fault of yours. Instead of panicking, running away from the scene in fear or fighting with the other party involved in the car accident, there are other things you should do. We are going to walk through some steps that you should take after a car accident.
- Don’t Flee From the Scene
When you are involved in a car accident, it is your obligation to stop at the scene and this is both for legal and humanitarian reasons. Car accidents are not as simple as slip and fall and therefore people do tend to get scared and flee the scene. According to the Road Traffic Act, it is an offence when you fail to stop at a car accident scene that you are involved in. Therefore even if it is a minor accident, stop at the scene, switch your engine off, turn the hazard lights on to let others know about your presence and call 911 immediately. Also, you are not under an obligation to admit responsibility according to your insurance company.
- Seek Medical Help immediately
Once you contact the required authorities, medical help will soon arrive. If you are severely injured then seek medical help before collecting evidence on the accident site. You can collect the details after you are cleared by the hospital because sometimes the injuries may seem inconsequential but they tend to become quite problematic later on. Therefore, your health needs to be your top priority.
- Get the Details
Before letting your insurance company take over, be sure to collect the facts that will be helpful for your insurance company. It is important to get the details once you are declared medically fit by the medic at the car accident scene. You should get the names, phone numbers and addresses of the people involved in the accident. Also get collect details about the car involved in the accident, like a brief description, the license plate number and the vehicle’s identification number. The latter is the most important as the majority of insurance companies only record the identification number and the car type.
- Call Your Insurance Company
When you are too much stressed about the accident, it is difficult to collect yourself and remember everything. Therefore, when you call your insurance company, let a police officer talk with them if you are distressed. The officer will be able to impart information more accurately. Once you contact your insurance company, things will be a little easier to deal with. When you seek a professional, you will get the correct guidance on how to proceed. Your lawyer or insurance company will also help you file your car accident claim.
- Know What You Can’t Record
Emotions don’t hold any importance when everything is based on factual data. Therefore nobody wants to know how you felt or what you were doing before or after the accident. These are the things that should be left out from your accident record. All state laws are different when it comes to personal injury cases and therefore contact your insurance company or an injury lawyer to know your legal obligations. This will help you to be aware of the things you can and can’t do when you are involved in a car accident.
The above were some things that you should do after a car accident and we hoped the above steps helped you to be more aware now.
