When you enter a car as a passenger, you place your trust and safety in the hands of your driver. This lack of control is one of the reasons why it can be so traumatic to be involved in a car accident as a passenger. If you or your loved one were injured in a car accident as a passenger, they are still entitled to seek compensation for their damages. The Sacramento car accident attorneys at Piering Law Firm have put together a few tips for those who have been injured as a passenger in a car accident.
Make Sure Everyone Is Safe
The first few seconds immediately after an accident are often chaotic, so give yourself a moment to assess the situation before you spring into action. After you have collected yourself, start looking around to see if you or anyone else involved in the accident were injured. If you or anyone else is in pain, or if you see any bumps, bruises, cuts, or blood, there are injuries that need to be treated. If anyone is injured, be sure to contact authorities as quickly as possible for medical assistance.
Call the Police
To make sure your injury claim is handled properly, you will need the police to conduct an investigation. When they arrive, tell them everything that happened before, during, and after the accident. They need complete statements from everyone who was involved, and from any independent witnesses who saw the accident but were not involved. After they have taken statements, examined all the vehicles that were involved, and reviewed all the evidence they find at the scene, they will prepare a written report. Make sure you get a copy of this report for your records.
Gather Information From Witnesses
If possible, you should walk around the accident scene and talk to everyone you can find who was involved in the accident. You should also make a point to talk to anyone who saw the accident but was not directly involved. These conversations will give you a clear picture of how everyone else believes the accident happened and what caused it. Talking to them will also allow you to determine how reliable each witness is, which will be important if you want to present any of them as witnesses in your injury claim against the responsible parties.
Visit Your Doctor
Making sure you heal properly should be your top priority, so it is imperative that you seek medical treatment for all your injuries as soon as possible after the accident. Some of your symptoms could take hours, days, or even weeks after the accident to appear. By the time they start to bother you, your underlying injuries could have significantly worsened and possibly reached the point of being irreversible. It is also helpful to have your doctor’s report of your injuries.
Keep Documents Related to the Accident
Keeping all your accident-related documents organized in one place will save you and your Sacramento auto accident attorney the hassle and expense of tracking them all down later. At a minimum, you should keep copies of the police report, your medical records, your medical bills, any photographs you take of the vehicles or of your own injuries, and documentation of any time you lost from work after the accident. All these documents will be evidence in your claim against the responsible parties.
Sacramento Car Accident Attorneys With 50+ Years of Experience
You could pursue your claim without an attorney. If you do, you will have to pay all your litigation-related costs out of pocket, oversee your case on your own, manage the rest of your life and deal with the insurance companies trying to take advantage of you. But if you would rather have the freedom to go about without the burden of prosecuting your own personal injury lawsuit, you should contact the Piering Law Firm's Sacramento auto accident attorneys. They will ensure your claim is handled professionally and fairly, and they will help you secure the maximum compensation possible for your injuries.
Choosing the right Sacramento auto accident attorney is one of the most important decisions you will make. When our team represents you, you can take comfort in knowing our attorneys have years of experience helping clients get the compensation you need. We will be your advocates in negotiations with the insurance company and in the courtroom if your case ends up going to trial. Do not settle for less than the best representation available to you.
Contact our Sacramento car accident lawyers today at (916) 476-2399 to schedule a free consultation!