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6 Steps to Protect Yourself After a Fort Myer Car Accident
Regardless of the initial cause of your car accident, this can be a very difficult situation for anyone involved. Car accidents are far too common and there is shock that injured victims must overcome before moving forward with specific actions. It’s unfortunate, but there are situations that could make it difficult for injured victims to move forward and hold the liable party or parties accountable. This article will help you to protect yourself after a Florida car accident and so will Viles & Beckman. Contact us today to get a free consultation.
What could you need protection from after a car accident? The answer is all the people who are trying to prevent you from getting the compensation you deserve while protecting their own wallets. This could mean dealing with the insurance company, problems with the negligent party, and more.
The good thing is there are a number of things that individuals can do in order to protect their rights after a car accident. Be sure to remember these steps if you are injured in a car accident due to the negligence of another person.
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1. Make Sure You Get the Right Information from the Responsible Driver
After an accident, it’s one of the more important steps to get the necessary information from the responsible driver. In terms of determining liability and negligence, the other party must be contacted by your lawyer and the insurance company.
Getting the right information is something that is necessary when it comes to filing a lawsuit to seek compensation after an accident. When you speak with the responsible party, or other individuals such as witnesses, you want to make sure you get the following information:
- License plate number
- Driver’s license information
- Complete contact information
- Insurance policy information
Take pictures of the above items with your cellphone!
These are all documents you can provide to your insurance company and lawyer to help develop an understanding of who is responsible for the accident and subsequent injury. Make sure you get all the information correctly and accurately; taking a photo of the other driver’s license, for example, will help prevent a typo in their home address.
2. Speak with Witnesses Who May Have Seen the Crash
In car accident cases, having the right evidence is imperative to your success. One of the best pieces of evidence you can have is someone else or multiple people who can serve as witnesses to the crash. These individuals may be very helpful in your pursuit of compensation.
Be sure to get their information so they may be contacted by the insurance company who can get a better understanding of the crash, what may have caused it, and who the witness claims were negligent in the matter.
Typically, you want to have witnesses who will help support your claim by giving a testimony that matches yours.
Click To Contact3. Take Pictures to Support Your Injury Claim
One of the most helpful things you can do is take the necessary photos if you can. These can be very beneficial to your claim because they can help show liability and the existence of serious injuries.
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Be sure to take the right pictures of your car accident and the scene.
Here are the things you want to be sure you’re taking pictures of:
- The scene of the accident can help to show if there were any acts of negligence. For instance, you may see tire marks from the other vehicle that had to brake because they were speeding. Or missing traffic signals could put some liability on a government entity.
- Taking pictures of the damage to your vehicle and the other vehicle can help show the location the collision occurred. In some situations, claims adjusters may be able to make a determination of cause based on damage location and the recollection of the event by those involved.
- Be sure to take pictures of any visible injuries you may have sustained as this is crucial in pursuing legal action. Showing that you did in fact suffer an injury as a result of someone’s negligence is part of proving liability.
- Also, take pictures of random things that could help later, like a security camera you see on a pole, the weather conditions, a bush blocking a view, etc. These things may help unexpectedly.
Pictures can be provided to the insurance company and your legal team to help prove you were harmed due to someone else’s reckless actions and that you have the right to seek compensation.
4. Seek Medical Attention as Soon as Possible
It’s unfortunate, but immediately following a crash, the presence of adrenaline can make it difficult for individuals to feel the pain from the injuries they may have suffered. Because of this, some people think they are not injured after an accident or refuse to got to the hospital because they “feel fine”. However, it is important to seek medical attention as quickly as you can because injuries often are there, you just can’t feel them yet.
In many cases, the pain from the injuries sustained can take hours or even days to impact a victim. Getting medical attention quickly helps to start the treatment process before the injuries worsen or, in some cases, it affects a legal situation.
This is because waiting can give the opposing legal team the opportunity to try and say you suffered the injury in a separate incident. They may claim that you didn’t seek medical treatment immediately, thus showing that you must have not been that hurt by the accident.
5. Be Careful About What You Say
In the aftermath of a car accident, things can be very confusing. Everything will move very quickly and the next thing you know you are stuck with a pile of medical bills and cannot work for several weeks because of an injury that you have suffered. Right after a car accident occurs, you need to be very careful about how you act and what you say since it can have a direct effect on a potential claim or lawsuit that you may choose to file in the future. One of the most common ways that people damage claims is by accidentally admitting fault for a car accident that they were involved in despite being completely innocent. Something as simple as apologizing after a car accident can be construed as an admission of fault despite the fault not being your own. Remember to only say what you absolutely have to when speaking to the others involved in an accident.
Also, be careful about what you say to the insurance company. They can and will take certain things that you say out of context in order to discredit your claim. They are not your friends. Their job is to evaluate a claim in a way that will reduce the amount of money that they have to pay out as much as possible. Insurance adjusters will ask a lot of questions about an accident and many of those questions will be worded in a way so that you accidentally admit fault. Insurance adjusters may also ask for a recorded statement that may be taken out of context and used against you so never do this unless you have a personal injury lawyer present to advise you.
6. Hire a Lawyer to Help You Navigate the Complex Issues
Following a car accident, there are a lot of legal issues that may arise and it’s important to know what is needed to navigate them. This is nearly impossible to do alone, and attempting to do so can impact your ability to seek compensation.
Instead, be sure to hire a legal professional who has handled situations like this before and knows what it takes to navigate the legal system. Hiring someone to stand by your side means you get to focus on your own recovery while your attorney handles the legal matters.
This means you get peace of mind at every single turn, knowing who to turn to when you have questions and someone to guide you in the most favorable decisions for your situations.
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Why Choose Viles & Beckman, LLC
Backed by more than 40 years of experience representing individuals harmed by negligence, our Fort Myers car accident attorneys at Viles & Beckman, LLC are ready to help you. We understand how difficult this situation can be and we’re committed to pursuing justice on your behalf,
You have rights following a car accident caused by negligence. Having skilled and seasoned legal advocacy means protecting those rights to their fullest ability. You can count on our team to help you move forward.
Call us at (239) 334-3933 today to discuss your potential issue and learn how our team may be able to help you.
About the Author of this Page: The above information was written or reviewed by one of the attorneys at Viles & Beckman LLC who have a combined experience of nearly 60 years: Marcus Viles, Michael Beckman. The information provided in this article comes from years of experience trying legal cases outside and inside courtrooms throughout Florida along with extensive research.
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