Liviu Marcus
Car crashes are among the most widespread causes of death, serious injury, and disability worldwide. In addition, even small collisions are a nightmare, and inefficiency and other causes such as speeding, drunk driving, and general carelessness are leading causes of road accidents. Certainly, car accidents are like trauma quakes, yet even a little shake like getting a few dents and scratches can cause trauma, too. Anyway, the collision could have resulted in you suffering from whiplash, internal bleeding due to the force with which the seatbelt pressed against you, or perhaps a mild concussion. Even a minor car accident can cause a victim moderate to serious injuries.
Moreover, one small dent and two coatwork scratches are almost always expensive to correct. And you were not the one who caused the accident, you ought not to be responsible for the car accident claims and your medical bills. Consequently, we have stated some essential steps that you must take after a minor car accident to prevent the sad event from affecting your finances.
Contact An Attorney
It is better to try to deal with the situation on your own and only getting pretty frustrated when your car insurance policy doesn’t pay than to assign the whole process to a car accident lawyer. Car crashes cost a lot as they include repairs, medical bills, lost income and a few other costs. The attorney is best placed to determine the value of the case. Irrespective of who your sources are be it an insurance policy itself or the driver in question, a professional attorney will always be the best option.
Photograph The Accident Scene
You may want to go to the driver who was at fault in the accident and demand that he should pay for the damage they have caused through their fault but it would be wiser to restrain yourself and take some time to make the pictures of the place of the accident. Make sure to photograph the other vehicle, and include the license plate number of the driver who caused the crash as well. The more photos you gather, the stronger argument you have.
Contact The Authorities
Having had an opportunity to collect the other driver’s contact details and insurance details, your claims would be less difficult. Nevertheless, you should give contacting the authorities first to have a police report drawn at the scene of the accident. Ideally, this should be carried out before driving off so that the police report can ascertain who is at fault for the collision.
Contact Emergency Services If Necessary
If anyone has sustained physical injuries in the accident, do not attempt to move the vehicles or the injured person. In turn, get in touch with the emergency services that are close to you and remains by the person to make sure they remain stable. If you do not need this, offer to call ambulance service of the organisation in your area.
Go Straight To The Emergency Room
After the trauma is done with and you are able to take your car, you should go straight to the emergency department of the nearest hospital. Regardless of how well you feel and did not feel any pain during the event, adrenaline will suppress the pain for a while. A short visit to the emergency room of your local hospital could hurt none but can save your life if you have the whiplash, internal bleeding or other latent injuries after the accident.
Consult Your Attorney
After you have got all your evidence which comprises the police report, accident scene photographs, the driver’s contact information, and an invoice alone with your check-up, you need to make an appointment with your lawyer. In certain circumstances you may prefer to call your insurance company, the other driver or the at-fault driver. Nevertheless, it is advisable to leave this to your lawyer and let them deal with the communications between either your insurer or the driver at fault’s insurer.
The process of claim will be done by your attorney. Also, the attorney will negotiate the amount in case the insurance company tries to pay less than a fair settlement. The process of claiming and negotiating how to handle such claims can undeniably be draining and annoying. And as you can include your attorney’s fees in your claim costs, hiring a lawyer will probably cost you nothing at all. Therefore, instead of wondering whether you will get a fee that can cover all your costs, you should leave it all to the hands of a professional lawyer.
