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Every year, according to the latest numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau, Americans get into more than 10 million car accidents. Unfortunately, many people involved in those car accidents are seriously injured, if not killed. This is one of the reason the States can sustain a whopping 150,322 separate personal injury lawyer law firms.
If you find yourself in an auto accident, it’s important to know what you should and shouldn’t do. Oftentimes, asking yourself “what should you do after a car accident” can be the difference between having to pay car accident compensation and being absolved of any wrong doing. If you’re wondering what should you do after a car accident, here are five tips that may help you avoid legal trouble after the fact.
What Should You Do After a Car Accident?
- Stay at the Scene of the Accident
- Calm Yourself
- Check Yourself, the Other Party for Injuries
- Take Photos of the Damage
- Try to Keep Any Conversation to a Minimum
As HowStuffWorks points out, you need to stay at the scene of the accident. In many states, fleeing the scene can actually land you with being charged with a felony. Stay at the scene, get the information you need, and be a responsible adult. It will be better for you in the long run.
There’s no doubt that being in an accident can be a frustrating, enraging time. That’s why State Farm Insurance insists you take the time to breathe a few deep breaths and calm yourself. The last thing you need is to get out of your car swinging, giving the opposing lawyer an argument that your road rage led to the accident.
It is incredibly common to break a leg, sustain whiplash, or receive any number of injuries in the course of an accident. Subsequently, FindLaw.com recommends you always check yourself, your passengers, and the people in the other car for injuries before taking any other steps. This quite literally could be a matter of life and death.
While cellphones are usually no friend to drivers — particularly those looking to avoid car accidents — they can be very useful following an auto accident, as Edmunds suggests. Use your phone’s camera to take pictures of the damage, both on your car and the other driver’s. This will be essential proof if you have to go to court to prove the other driver damaged your car during the accident.
Part of human nature is the want to talk to people when things go wrong. However, in the case of a car accident, writes About.com, you need to suppress this urge. You really don’t want to say anything that can be misconstrued as an admission of your guilt, if you wind up having to lawyer up.
Are you a long time personal injury accident lawyer? What advice would you give drivers wondering what they should do following an auto accident to avoid car accident injury claims? Share your expert advice with us in the comment section below. Read this for more.
