Being prepared after a car accident is essential to protecting your legal rights and securing compensation that you deserve.
An unexpected car accident will leave accident survivors both confused and unsure about what immediate action to pursue. Amidst the chaos, many make crucial mistakes that compromise their ability to recover fair compensation from insurance companies.
Any misstep can weaken your case further. It is therefore essential that victims understand what to do after a car accident in order to safeguard their legal rights and secure fair compensation payments for injuries suffered.
Failure to call law enforcement and posting about their accident on social media are both actions (or inactions) with long-term repercussions that victims often don’t recognize – which could impede their chances of receiving fair financial recovery for medical bills, lost wages and other damages. This article covers some of the most frequently made legal mistakes following accidents as well as how to prevent future ones.
1. Failing to Contact Law Enforcement
People make a major error following car accidents when they avoid contacting law enforcement officials. Several drivers think that accidents requiring no police call allow them to trade insurance data and leave as this official record maintains details about every event alongside first-hand fault analysis.
Without a police report, it can be more challenging to prove liability after an accident occurs. Insurance companies could question your account of events while the other driver could alter their story later; even if they admit fault at first glance, they could deny responsibility later and leave you without solid proof supporting your claim. Therefore, whenever an incident occurs – no matter how minor – always contact law enforcement and report the incident immediately.
2. Admitting Fault at the Scene
In the immediate aftermath of a collision, emotions run high, leading some people to instinctively apologize–even when they weren’t at fault. Affirmations like “I’m sorry” could be misconstrued as admitting responsibility and should therefore be avoided in their entirety. While being polite to those involved is crucial, statements which suggest responsibility should also be avoided as much as possible.
Fault in a car accident should be determined through evidence, witness statements and applicable traffic laws – not by what a driver says at the scene. Even if you believe you contributed to the collision yourself, other factors could have played a part, including negligent drivers, road conditions or vehicle malfunctions that you don’t account for. Let police and insurance adjusters investigate in order to ascertain facts rather than preconceived notions when assigning fault.
3. Not Gathering Sufficient Evidence
Evidence is key when filing personal injury claims, yet many accident victims fail to properly document the scene after a crash. If physically possible, take photos of all vehicles involved as well as nearby traffic signals, skid marks, road hazards and injuries visible afterward as this will serve as invaluable proof when establishing fault and damages.
Additionally, collect the contact details of all involved parties including names, phone numbers, driver’s license numbers, and insurance details. If there are witnesses involved in your accident claim, make sure you get their names and statements if possible as their testimony could prove crucial in supporting your claim later. Without sufficient documentation your claim could hinge solely on you against another driver and weaken any chance for compensation recovery.
4. Delaying Medical Treatment
People often underestimate their injuries after car accidents, thinking they don’t feel any immediate discomfort. Unfortunately, injuries like whiplash, concussions, internal bleeding and soft tissue damage might not present symptoms immediately, so delaying medical attention could harm both your health and personal injury claim.
Insurance companies frequently cite gaps in medical treatment as evidence that your injuries were not severe or were not the result of the crash. Seeking immediate medical care after any crash makes it harder for insurers to dispute your claim; even if you feel fine after an incident, always visit a healthcare professional afterward to be evaluated by healthcare experts.
5. Communicating with Insurance Adjusters Without Legal Advice
An accident victim often feels overwhelmed when an insurer contacts them directly after an accident to manage their claim without legal representation. When your at-fault insurance adjuster calls to help settle your claim they present a mix of comforting behavior along with distressing phone interactions.
You should recognize that insurance adjusters focus mainly on reducing settlements. Under their profit-driven model insurance companies search for multiple opportunities to pay claims at minimum rates since it compromises your legal entitlements.
After an accident, victims accidentally disclose statements that hurt their case during conversations without knowing how detrimental these statements will be. For example, they may downplay the severity of their injuries in hopes that doing so will make the process faster; or mention being fine or “just sore,” even though they could have experienced whiplash, soft tissue damage, or internal injuries which have yet to manifest symptoms – seemingly harmless statements which insurance adjusters can use against them to argue that your injuries were less severe than claimed – further decreasing chances for receiving fair compensation.
6. Accepting an Unfavorable Settlement Offer
Insurance companies often make quick settlement offers to accident victims in hopes that they’ll accept an initial low payout without fully comprehending all their injuries and damages. While accepting these initial offers might tempt some to move on quickly from an accident scene quickly, such initial payouts typically don’t cover medical bills, lost wages, and future treatment expenses adequately.
Accepting an insurance settlement deal functions permanently to prohibit any future attempts to claim additional compensation regardless of worsening health conditions. Make sure you talk to legal counsel before accepting an offer to verify that it restores your complete claim value.
7. Posting About an Accident on Social Media
Insurance adjusters, defense attorneys and even opposing parties’ legal teams monitor social media for posts, photos or comments that could be used against you as evidence against injury claims. Information posted online could potentially be used against you even if it has nothing directly related to an incident; even harmless posts about feeling “fine” today or feeling sore could potentially backfire and work against you.
Example: If you reported being injured in a back accident and later posted photos showing yourself at the gym or enjoying an active vacation, an insurer might argue that your injuries weren’t as severe as claimed. Simply smiling with friends or doing simple activities such as walking may make an insurer suspicious that they should reduce or deny your claim altogether.
8. Not Consulting a Personal Injury Lawyer
One of the biggest mistakes accident victims make when making their claim on their own is trying to handle their negotiations with insurance companies without legal help.
Though some believe they can manage this themselves, oftentimes the compensation received falls well short of expectations. Personal injury attorneys understand how to navigate complex claims efficiently while gathering evidence quickly for submission against insurers and negotiate aggressively on their behalf.
An experienced lawyer can determine the true value of your claim by taking into account medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering damages and future costs. Your legal professional will help you respect all deadlines and identify potential legal pitfalls which could damage your case. Addressing an attorney directly following an accident speeds up your access to the highest possible compensation.
Conclusion
Being prepared after a car accident is essential to protecting your legal rights and securing compensation that you deserve. Unfortunately, many accident victims make unwitting legal errors that cost them dearly: failing to contact police, admitting fault without medical treatment being provided promptly or accepting lowball settlement offers are among some of the biggest mistakes one can make that could weaken their claim or reduce financial recovery.
