Car Accident: What Information You Must Gather
When you are involved in a car accident, your mind is immediately flooded with questions and worries.
- Are my kids ok?
- Am I injured?
- Is the other driver OK?
- How much damage did my car suffer?
- What happened?
Because your mind is racing, you might be overwhelmed and forget to gather necessary information from the driver, witnesses, and authorities after a car accident. To ensure you get the evidence you need, it’s important to call a personal injury attorney. He or she will guide you through what steps to take before leaving the accident scene, including the following.
Get a Copy of the Police Report
When you’re in a car accident, no matter if it’s a minor fender bender or a massive wreck, it’s essential to call the authorities. The police will come to the scene of an accident and write up an official accident report. This will contain information you will need to pursue a personal injury lawsuit against the liable driver, including what traffic laws were violated, what caused the accident, and statements from the drivers and witnesses. You may need to follow up with the officer to get the official report. Once you get it, you should give it to your lawyer to review.
Take Photos of the Car Accident
It’s crucial to take photos of any injuries you sustained, damage to your vehicle, and the accident scene. This will provide evidence that your injuries were suffered during the car accident. It will also document damage caused to your vehicle. When documenting the accident scene, you should include any traffic control signs, street signs, and anything else to show where the accident occurred and what caused it.
Get Driver, Witness Contact Information
Before leaving the car accident scene, make sure you get all of the necessary information from the other driver. This includes their name, address, phone number, email, and all of their insurance information. You should also get the names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of all witnesses.
Even though this will be in the police report, it’s important to have it for your own needs immediately so you can start contacting your insurance company and provide the information to your attorney.
Obtain Your Medical Records
After the accident, it’s essential to be checked out by a medical professional. If you have a serious injury, you will need emergency medical attention at the scene of the accident. If you have a minor injury, it’s still important to be seen by a doctor at urgent care or the emergency room. It’s essential to have all injuries listed in your medical records for any potential personal injury claims. You will need to document the date you were seen, the name of the medical professional who treated you, what tests were conducted, what medications were given, and what treatment was performed. You will also need a medical professional to list all official diagnoses and prognoses, as well as copies of all bills and invoices. This will help your lawyer determine what to seek in damages.
If you have serious injuries that require follow-up care, such as surgery or physical therapy, you will also need to obtain records for each appointment, a detailed list of what treatments were performed, and any bills and invoices.
Provide Proof of Your Income
You will need to provide records of your income to your attorney. Why is this important? If you missed any time at work due to your injuries, you can claim the lost income as part of the damages in the lawsuit. You just need to show how much money you lost. To do this you will need to provide your attorney with pay stubs, direct deposit receipts, or other financial documents to prove the amount of income you lost.
Get Vehicle Damage Estimates After the Car Accident
If your vehicle suffered damage in the accident, you need to provide any repair estimates to show the insurance company and the liable driver how much money to ask for to complete the repairs. You may need to let your insurance company get the damage estimate, or you may need to get a few repair estimates from body shops.
If you were injured in a car accident, contact the attorneys at Gallagher & Kennedy at 602-530-8400. We care about our clients and are committed to using our skills, work ethic, and resources to help you or your family obtain compensation and justice.