After A Collision
PROTECT YOUR RIGHTS
In North Carolina has a very harsh law called contributory negligence. This means that if the insurance company finds that you contributed as little as 1% to the collision by your action or lack of action to avoid the collision, they can completely deny your claim, even if the police report does not put you at fault.
That is why it is so important to call an attorney before you speak with the insurance company. Even a small detail regarding distance, speed or conditions can be the difference between your receiving full recovery on your claim or being completely denied.
Cynthia Justice can guide you to your maximum recovery.
STEPS TO TAKE AT THE ACCIDENT SCENE:
STOP YOUR CAR/CALL THE POLICE
Never leave the scene of an accident in which you or your car was involved. No matter how slight the collision, if you fail to stop you may subject yourself to criminal prosecution, even though the accident was not your fault.
If possible leave your vehicles where they were after the collision. Moving the vehicles may destroy evidence of who was at fault.
Call the police. You will need and want a police report because that will be your written record of the collision and the parties involved. Failing to file a report will make getting compensation from the insurance companies very difficult.
GET EVIDENCE
TAKE NOTES
Make notes of the important aspects of the collision to help you remember them.
Diagram the exact position of the vehicles before and after the accident.
Write down the make, model, color and license plate of the other vehicle. This information will be crucial if the other driver decides to leave the scene of the collision before the police come.
TAKE PHOTOS
If possible take pictures at the accident scene of damage and injuries.
Take photos of the vehicles involved in the collision. This will be evidence of the damage and the force of the impact. Today many people have cameras on their cell phones that create surprisingly good photographs. Be careful to take the photos that show most or all of the vehicle and not small areas of the car that are not identifiable.
Take photos of your injuries. Bruises, cuts and scrapes heal quickly and photographs of these injuries will be the best way to describe them and have the most impact for your case.
GET WITNESS INFORMATION
Get the names, telephone numbers and email addresses of any witnesses to the collision.
Often clients will tell me that a person stopped who saw the collision but left the scene before the police came. That person could be critical to your case and once they leave the scene it will be nearly impossible to locate them again. Also get the information from witnesses who speak with the police, because sometimes these people do not appear on the police report and their information can be lost forever.
Make sure to get the exchange slip from the police officer that will tell you the officer's information, the other driver's name and contact information and the other driver insurance carrier and policy number.
SEE A DOCTOR
After you leave the scene of the collision see a doctor immediately for an examination and ask your passengers to do likewise. It is important that you mark in time the connection between you injuries and the collision. Seeing a doctor will do this. Waiting even a few days to go to the doctor can damage your case. The longer you wait to go to the doctor the more likely the insurance company will argue that you were not injured from the collision but some other event that happened after the collision.
IF YOU DON'T HAVE HEALTH INSURANCE
We can help find you a doctor who will treat you and hold the bills until we receive settlement or trial award in your case. Just give us a call at 704-324-4434.