(Newswire.net — November 17, 2020) —
When you find yourself involved in an accident with an uninsured driver, a bad situation can become even worse if things are not handled correctly. If you sustain injuries but the other driver is uninsured, collecting compensation for medical bills and suffering can become a nightmare.
The steps taken by each driver after an accident are crucial to the outcome and how much you may be able to collect in compensation. That’s why it’s important to take the following actions both during and after an auto accident.
Call 911
The first thing you should do after an accident is to call 911. You should do this even if you don’t feel that your injuries are severe or life-threatening. It’s important that qualified emergency medical technicians (EMTs) evaluate you and document your injuries. There are many types of injuries that may not seem serious initially but can become more apparent much later after an accident.
The documentation that the EMTs record can also serve as medical evidence later on if there’s any dispute about the type or severity of the injuries that may have occurred. Also, it’s in your best interest if the EMTs can evaluate the other driver as well, even if they don’t seem injured. This can help to protect you if there are any disputes about what injuries you may have caused to the other driver.
File An Accident Report
After you have called for an ambulance to render assistance, you should next contact the local police department. In many cases, the 911 operator will dispatch the police automatically when they receive a call about an accident.
However, you should also do this just to ensure that they are coming out. If a police unit is already on the way, they will simply tell you so when you call the department.
The point of making sure the police come out to the scene is to file an accident report so that you have an official record that the accident, in fact, occurred. Also, the police officer that arrives can serve as an additional witness on the scene. Even though the police have not witnessed the accident itself, their physical presence afterward can at least be helpful.
If there’s any doubt about what type of damage or visible injuries may have occurred, the accident report will normally have these types of details on record. After the police officer has arrived, they will normally provide you with an identification number for the accident report and the officer’s badge number. You should attempt to collect this information if you are not provided with it for your own records.
Exchange Information
While you wait for the police to arrive, regardless of who is at fault, you should gather information from the other driver as well as share your information with them.
Although they can’t provide you with their insurance policy card, they should still be able to provide you with their driver’s license, vehicle registration number, and license plate number. You should provide them with the same as well as your insurance card.
Document Important Details
Once you’ve exchanged information with the uninsured driver, you should make sure to document any important details that your insurance company may ask you for. This includes details about the vehicle such as the make, model, and color.
You should try to gather as many witness details as you can. Look around for anybody who may have witnessed the accident and gather their names and contact information if possible. The police officer who files the accident report will normally question witnesses themselves. However, some may leave the scene of the accident before the officer arrives, which is why you should attempt to gather their details yourself.
If the accident happened near any businesses, look around to see if there are any security cameras outside these businesses that may have captured the accident. Make a mental note of this so that you can speak to the managers or owners of these companies later to see if you can retain a copy of the footage in case you need it. This isn’t always necessary but may be worth your time in cases where it’s difficult to determine who is at fault in an accident.
Gather Visual Evidence
Taking pictures of as many details as you can of the scene is extremely important. You should take pictures of visible injuries (both yours and the other driver’s if possible), any damage to either vehicle, the other driver’s license plate, and any things that may have played a role in the accident.
Even if something doesn’t seem relevant to the accident at the time, it may prove to be very important later. So, it’s always a good idea to photograph street signs, the road that both drivers were driving on, and anything else you can think of that’s nearby.
The police officer who files the accident report will sometimes take their own pictures of the scene of the accident, but this entirely depends on the severity of the accident and each police department’s specific policies.
Contact Your Insurance Company
After you and the other driver have left the scene and gone your separate ways the next want to contact your insurance company to file a claim with them. All of the details that you gathered at the scene and the pictures you took can be vital in this step of the process.
You’ll normally be assigned an insurance claims adjuster who is a representative of the insurance company and who investigates claims. They will ask for much of the information that you collected at the scene.
In most cases, they will also contact the involved police department to retrieve the accident report that was filed. However, depending on the insurance company, in some cases, you may be responsible for collecting this report.
When you are the one responsible for this, you should contact the police department and provide them with the accident report identification number or other details about the accident in order to collect it.
Speak To An Attorney
Lastly, you’ll want to speak to a personal injury attorney in Covington Ky who can protect your best interests. An experienced attorney knows what medical documents and other evidence they’ll need to argue your case. They know how to negotiate with defense attorneys and how to mediate with your insurance company. By contacting a personal injury attorney in Covington Ky who has experience with these matters, you’ll be able to speak to someone who can ensure you’re receiving the best outcome.