Car accidents can happen anywhere and at any time. While the number of people injured in car accidents has been on the decline in Louisiana in recent years, more than 10,500 still suffered serious injuries in Louisiana auto accidents in 2019 and 754 people tragically died in 2019 car crashes. If a vehicle rear-ends you on while you are running errands, you likely feel a little dazed and in shock in the first moments after the crash. You may not realize how what you do next can impact your accident property damage claim and your personal injury claim.
So, when you are involved in a car accident, you need to know what mistakes to avoid, to make receiving proper compensation for your injuries and vehicle damage easier. Here are five tips on mistakes to avoid after a car accident:
1 Don’t neglect to call police and make a police report of the accident. You will need an official police report that details when the crash occurred, where it occurred, what happened and what circumstances led to the crash.
2 Don’t admit fault for the accident. You may believe you are partially at fault for the accident occurring. However, you never should admit fault for the accident. You may be mistaken and you didn’t cause the accident. If you admit fault, the other driver may decide to sue you personally if the other driver suffers an injury in the accident.
3 Don’t neglect to seek medical treatment for any accident injuries, even if you discover an injury days or weeks later. You shouldn’t refuse medical treatment after an accident. You may be bleeding internally and not realize it. You also could wake up days later and feel severe back pain or realize you suffered whiplash weeks after an accident. You need to seek medical treatment then, so you can document how serious your injury is for your personal injury claim.
4 Don’t neglect to get contact information for any accident witnesses or take your own photos of the car accident scene with your cell phone. The more evidence you have of what occurred in the accident, the better for your property damage and personal injury claim.
5 Don’t accept an injury settlement from an insurance company without consulting a personal injury attorney. Often, insurance companies try to settle accident injury claims quickly and for less money than you may really need to cover your medical bills and treatment costs. You want to make sure you get the proper compensation to cover your injury costs.
Suffering an injury in a car accident can feel overwhelming and frustrating. You don’t want to make mistakes that make it more difficult to receive maximum compensation for your injury or property damage costs. That’s why it’s important to take the right steps after being involved in a car accident.
