What Are Some of the Steps I Should Consider Taking After a Car Accident?
Posted on: March 17, 2022
If you have been involved in an auto accident, you may be shocked, flustered or worried that you don’t know what to do.
While the following is not legal advice, this post contains some general advice we give to our clients who have been involved in a car accident.
Here are things you should consider doing after an accident:
- Stay in a safe location, if possible, your vehicle, and turn off your vehicle’s engine.
- Call 911 to report the accident. If it’s a minor accident in which no vehicles were towed and no injuries were reported, police might not arrive at the accident scene.
- Ask the police to send an ambulance if you are hurt.
- Write down details about the accident so you can recall them later. Information to collect includes the date and time of the accident; the weather conditions; the name of the street and other location details; and the names and contact information of any passengers.
- Get the name, phone number and email of any witnesses who are willing to provide information about the accident.
- Below is what I recommend you should try and get from the other driver:
- Their license and auto insurance information,
- Their home address,
- Their phone number and email,
- Their vehicle’s tag number and, state
- Their vehicle’s information.
- Take pictures of the accident scene, your vehicle and injuries, and the other driver’s vehicle and injuries.
- Offer video from your dashcam, if you have one, to the police and your insurance company.
- Use your cellphone to take photos and to store the driver’s information and other accident details.
- Be careful about what you say to the other driver. It may be a good idea to consult with a lawyer before making any statements to the other driver. It is generally not a good idea to make statements if you are in a shocked or nervous condition.
- Report the accident to your insurance company. However, we generally recommend to our clients that they do not provide any recorded statements until they have sought advice from an experienced attorney. This advice also applies to reporting claims to the other driver’s insurance.
- Get help from an experienced law firm like us.