To protect your rights after a car accident, it might help you to hire a personal injury lawyer. A lawyer can handle all communications with the negligent party and their insurance company for you, ensure you have all of the necessary evidence, build your claim, and help you reach a settlement for compensation.
There are many missteps one can take following a car accident, and hiring a lawyer can mitigate almost all of them. However, there are some things you can do on your own immediately after the accident to aid in your case.
Call the Police
After getting to safety, the first thing you should do is call the police to file an accident report. This might be required by law, depending on the state you live in. Some states require you to file a police report following an accident that does a certain level of damage.
Not only will this ensure you are following the law, but it will also serve as a crucial piece of evidence later on if you intend to take legal action.
Getting Medical Attention After Your Accident
There are things you should remember after you suffer injuries in an accident. These include the following:
Get Prompt Medical Care
You should seek medical care as soon as possible following your accident. This will rule out the possibility of any pain that you might not have noticed yet. For example, whiplash symptoms may not occur until hours or days after the accident, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Seeking medical attention right away can ensure you are taking the right steps to protect your health. It also helps protect your right to compensation. When a medical professional documents your injuries soon after the accident, it gives the defense less of an opportunity to exploit a delay or gap in treatment.
Protect Your Right to Compensation
Seeing a doctor or other medical professional shortly after injury will also illustrate that any pain you have suffered occurred because of the car accident and not for another reason. This is critical to one of the main elements of proving negligence in personal injury cases. To make the other driver pay for your injuries and losses, you have to show that the accident directly resulted in your injuries.
Seeking medical attention might also be required to seek an insurance claim at all, depending on your state.
You should follow the doctor’s orders. For example, attend every physical therapy session they prescribe. This will ensure your rights because if you do not do everything possible to cure yourself, the negligent party’s legal representation or insurance company might argue your injuries are not as bad as you say they are. It will also ensure you are adequately recovering.
Do Not Speak with the Insurance Adjusters
Remember that insurance adjusters can use anything you say to them against you. They might take any off-handed comment as an admission of fault and try to reduce the settlement amount they offer you.
You can instead leave the communications to a car accident lawyer. They know what to say to insurance adjusters and can negotiate a settlement for you.
Should You Call a Lawyer for Help?
Hiring a lawyer is something you can do to protect your rights after a car accident. A lawyer can take on every aspect of your case for you to help you get a financial award. We can help you by gathering information, working to prove negligence, building your case, negotiating with the at-fault party, and taking your case to trial.
Jack Bernstein and Scott Poisson have worked together since 1997 to protect their clients’ rights. We’ve won millions of dollars in settlements in car accident cases. We want to help make sure your rights are protected too.
You Do Not Have to Pay Us Before We Begin Working for You
You do not have to worry about whether you can afford a car accident lawyer because we work on a contingency-fee-basis. You owe us nothing upfront or out of pocket. We only get paid once we win you a settlement outside of court or via a judgment at trial.
Reach Out to Our Attorneys Today
A member of our team can tell you whether a car accident lawyer can help you recover compensation for your injuries following a car accident. Call High Stakes Injury Law today at (702) 444-3228 for your free, no-obligation consultation. You have a limited time to file a lawsuit, so reach out as soon as you can to get started.