3 Helpful Steps That Can Protect Your Legal Claim After A Car Accident

If you're involved in a car accident and are not responsible for causing it, you may have legal options. The other driver may have been negligent, and you deserve compensation for any vehicle damage or injuries that resulted. Make sure you protect your legal claim by taking these steps:

Contact the Police

After making sure everyone is okay and getting to a safe area, it's important to contact the police. Even if injuries or damage to your vehicle is minor, you need the police to take an official statement. They'll record what happened, document the appropriate damage, and record statements from any witnesses that were present. 

During the police interview, it's important to give as many details as you can and tell the truth. You can then use this statement to prove to insurance companies that the accident did actually occur. The police report also can be used in court should you seek compensation from the other party. 

Gather Evidence

Arguments often ensue after car accidents because both parties usually deny any wrongdoing. If you strongly believe you didn't cause the accident, you'll need to prove it by gathering as much evidence as you can. You don't need professional equipment, either. A simple camera phone will suffice, and you can use it to document damage to your vehicle or injuries to your body. 

Leave evidence as is before taking pictures, so that you can accurately portray what happened. It's also important to take pictures of the other vehicle involved. After all, you never know what measures the other driver may do to try to hide their part in the accident. Talking to witnesses and seeing if they would testify in court also helps corroborate your side of the story. 

Hire a Lawyer

If you've never been involved in such an accident before, you'll need legal counsel. Contact an attorney who specializes in personal injury. They'll look at your case and determine how much compensation you should seek, based on previous cases and how severe the accident was.

They'll also ensure you don't make any damaging statements when talking to news outlets or insurance companies. They can even work with accident reconstructionists, proving what exactly happened during the accident. 

After a severe car accident, it's only natural to feel stressed and not yourself. With the right legal steps and help from experienced car accident lawyers, though, you can get back to some sort of normalcy before everything happened. 

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