A Guide To California Personal Injury Claims - Part 2 Of 2
The following tips and pointers are based on California personal injury law
. Although your State's laws may be the same or similar, if you have a claim outside of California, you should consult an attorney in that State.In our society, personal injury caused by someone else is compensated with money. It is the great equalizer. Unlike some other places around the world, we don't take an eye for an eye. We don't take the wrongdoer's first born child. We do not trade a lifetime of indentured servitude. We take money to make us whole. Like it or not, it's the American way.
Now that you know some of the things to watch out for and avoid after a personal injury accident from part 1 of this article, let's go over some things that you can do to positively impact your situation.
- Seek immediate medical attention.
Many significant injuries are not immediately noticeable and may not present any immediate symptoms, pain, or even discomfort. For instance, you may not experience any noticeable symptoms from a closed head injury for several hours or even days. Internal bleeding may not cause any discomfort until sometime after the actual accident. In any of these cases, however, if the injuries are not diagnosed and treated correctly and quickly, the results can be devastating, and in some instances, even life threatening. You can avoid tragedy by going straight to the hospital after the accident to get checked out by a doctor.
- Inform your own insurance company of the accident.
Most, if not all insurance policies require you to report an accident to your own insurance company within a certain amount of time even if the accident was not your fault. Your own insurance company can be a helpful resource after an accident. In many instances, they will pay up front to repair any property damage, provide a rental vehicle, and in some cases, even help pay your bills if you are unable to work. Then, later, they will seek reimbursement from the other person's insurance company.
In some situations, they may even hire and pay for a lawyer to represent you. But, be careful. In certain situations, the interests of your insurance company may conflict with your own. For example, if the other person's insurance is insufficient to cover the damage that the other person has caused you, your own insurance may try to minimize their own obligations to cover them.
In any event, it is a good idea to get an attorney for yourself, on your own. Most reputable attorneys will provide their services to you on a contingent fee basis. There will be no up front, out of pocket cost to you for their services and any attorney fees will be taken as a percentage of any monetary recovery they gain for you first. Most importantly, your own attorney will not have any interests that work in conflict to yours.
- Call the police at the time of the accident.
If you are able, you should call the police from the scene of the accident, immediately after it occurs. The police will collect information such as the other person's contact and insurance information, identify any eye witnesses, and will likely write a report outlining their preliminary investigation of the accident and how it happened. They may even write a ticket for the other driver which may support their fault in causing the accident.
- Gather facts and information.
Even if the police are called to the scene of the accident, if you are able, you should collect as much information as you can, on your own. Get the other person's driver's license and insurance information. Gather information from any witnesses. Take any and as many pictures of the scene of the accident as you can, as well as any damage to your vehicle, their vehicle, and to yourself.
If you've suffered visible injury, document your injuries with photographs and keep a journal of any symptoms you experience. Cuts and bruises will heal and if your case goes to court later, photographs will show what your injuries looked like while you were hurt.
If you are able, take photos of any skid marks on the roadway before they fade or are washed away. Take pictures of any damage to your vehicle and the other vehicle before they are repaired. All of these thins will only help support your claim later.
- Preserve physical evidence.
Although it may be a macabre task and a painful reminder of your suffering, preserve any physical evidence that you can of the accident without altering it. For example, keep any damaged clothing or other damaged property that does not need to be repaired immediately in a safe place. These items will be valuable evidence of the accident and your injuries later on.
- Consult an attorney
If the accident is minor, if you did not suffer any significant injuries, and if there was no major property damage, you may not need to actually hire an attorney. Otherwise, it is usually a good idea to at least consult with an experienced personal injury attorney, even if you decide not to hire one, which you have no obligation to do, just to assess the seriousness of your potential case.
Whether you consult with or hire an attorney to handle your case, however, remember, there are time limits for filing a legal claim against the other person. If you fail to file a lawsuit in time, you may be barred forever from filing any such claim.
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