If you are involved in an automobile accident, there are certain things you should do to protect yourself and your legal rights. The following is a list of the top ten things you should do if you are in an automobile accident:
1. STOP: Never leave the scene of an accident, doing so is a violation of the Vehicle & Traffic Law, and it can also void your insurance coverage. You should get out of the way of oncoming traffic and move to a safe location, but you must not leave the scene of the accident. The vehicles involved in the accident should remain where they are, unless they are not in a safe location or they interfere with traffic.
In addition, be sure that the operator of any other vehicle involved in the accident doesn’t flee. Proving liability in a hit-and-run accident is difficult, and you want to avoid being in that situation.
2. CALL THE POLICE: Even if it doesn’t appear that anyone is injured, you should call 911 as soon as you are in a safe location to do so. At a minimum, you may need a police report to file an insurance claim, so don’t be complacent and leave the scene without reporting the accident to the police. A police report is also helpful in sorting out who is at fault for the happening of the accident. The best way to get the police involved is to call calling 911 from the scene of the accident.
3. IDENTIFY WITNESSES: Look around to see if anyone witnesses the accident. If so, get their name, address and phone number. Securing these details is vey helpful in proving your case. Ask them to stay until the police arrive, so the police officer can interview each witness.
4. TAKE PICTURES: You should take photos –take lots of photos. If its safe to do so before moving your bike, motorcycle or vehicle, then do so. Take photos that show the location where the vehicles, your motorcycle or bicycle came to rest. If you don’t take photos the day of the accident, then return to the location of the accident as soon as possible after the accident to take photos.
Note the location of the sun at the time of the accident and try to determine if glare from the sun obstructed the other motorist’s vision. If so, try to take photos into the sun to show the role sun glare.
5. EXCHANGE INFORMATION: While the police officer who responds scene gathers this information, you should try to get this information as soon as you can after the accident, just in case the other motorist leaves the scene of the accident. Start off by getting the plate numbers of any vehicles involved in the accident. You can do this by simply taking a photo of its license plates. Take a photo of the registration sticker in its window. You should also ask for the insurance card for all vehicles involved in the accident. Under applicable law, a motorist is required to provide this information. Take a photo of the insurance identification card and the other motorist’s driver’s license.
6. WHAT TO TELL THE POLICE: If the police respond, identify yourself and be sure to be as accurate as possible in describing the accident, to the best of your ability. Don’t speculate – tell the truth. If you don’t feel that you’re injured, then don’t simply tell the officer that you are not injured. Instead, let the officer know that you’re not sure. Many times, the pain and discomfort from soft tissue injuries takes hours or days to materialize.
7. REPORT THE ACCIDENT. Notify your insurance company as soon as possible. Most insurance policies require you to immediately report the accident, and, if you don’t immediately report the accident to your insurance company, then your insurance company may use you failure to report as a basis to deny providing any coverage for your involvement in the accident. So, report the accident as soon as you can to your insurance company.
8. SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION. Often, injuries caused by motor vehicle accidents are not immediately apparent. It typically takes hours or days before soft tissue injuries to become apparent. Unless you are absolutely certain you were not injured, you should seek medical attention at your local emergency room or by seeing your family physician.
If there is any damage to your helmet or you lost consciousness or were dazed for even a short period of time following the accident, you may have suffered a concussion or closed head injury. This can cause cognitive and behavioral changes if left untreated. Seek immediate medical attention, and save your damaged helmet.
9. KEEP A FILE: Keep all your accident-related documents and information together in one file. Also keep a record of your visits to medical providers and of any time you lose from work.
10. CHECK YOUR HELMET: Hopefully, you were wearing a helmet. You should examine it for any signs of damage. You should show your helmet to your medical providers, so they can examine it for damage. If you expect your helmet was damaged, you should have it examined by a qualified professional before you use it again.