No one wants to be caught up in a vehicular accident. After all, you get hurt, and may even die if it’s bad enough. When you do survive, it can all seem like a flurry of activity that you have to take in all at once. People from all sides will be wanting to hear from you about it. And that can be quite disorienting on your part. Take a hold on your thoughts and actions and focus on doing the following right after the incident.
Seek Help
The first thing that you should do is to seek medical attention. You may not see right away that you’re injured, but you may have suffered internal damage. It’s better to know right away how you are, and your findings can help your case. You should also get in contact with a personal injury lawyer while you’re at it. They can help guide you through any legal procedures that you need to take, as well as protect you from the other person’s lawyer or your insurance agent.
Don’t Rant
You may be hurt by the accident, both physically and emotionally, but you should still exercise some self-control and avoid talking to just anyone about it. Take control of your feelings about the situation first and put everything into the right perspective. You may also feel that you have to, but don’t go and talk to your insurance agent just yet. Or at least speak with your lawyer to know if it’s alright to do so. Know that whatever you say and do while you’re in the heat of the moment can be used against you.
Gather Evidence
Instead of talking and raging, what you should be doing is taking note of details. However, it’s best to not rely on your own memory for this. It would be wise for you to actually put it down on words, or take pictures and audio if you can. Doing this will greatly help you when you’re building a case, or when the other party is filing one against you. Share any and all details with your lawyer, so they can help you in the best way that they can.
Be Prompt
If you’re going to build a case against the other person, make sure that you do it as soon as you can. If you take too long, people will doubt the integrity of what you’re saying. After all, would it even make sense to sue someone for an accident when a few months have passed already? Of course, if you’re not going to press charges at all, then that would be the only time when you can take your sweet time to recover and move on.
Keeping your wits about you and going about the situation in the proper manner can help you get through it smoothly. Not only that, but you’ll avoid further legal and financial danger and be able to build your case easily. The most important thing when experiencing and surviving an auto accident is to keep calm and make sure to contact the right people for help.