BEFORE THE ACCIDENT
Being prepared for the possibility of an automobile
accident can save lives and reduce injuries.
Being prepared can also make the process smoother if a
personal injury claim or lawsuit needs to be
filed to protect your rights.
Wear Your Seatbelt. The easiest, most effective way to
save lives and reduce serious injury. Learn
about Staying Safe on the road.
Keep an Emergency Kit in the Car. Your kit should include:
A flashlight.
Flares and / or a reflective
triangle.
Matches or a lighter.
A first aid kit with bandages, gauze,
adhesive tape, antiseptic cream, instant ice
and heat compresses, scissors and aspirin.
Vinyl Gloves.
Handi-Wipe Towelettes.
Check Your Insurance.
Are you protected if the driver who
causes the accident takes off, has no
insurance or does not have enough
insurance? Check the Uninsured
Motorist part of your insurance.
Make sure your automobile insurance
helps you pay for your medical bills and see
the doctors you want to see. Check if
your insurance gives you Medical Payment benefits.
Keep A Packet of Documents and
Information in the Car. Use a ziplock bag to keep
important documents and information in one
place. Include:
Vehicle Registration.
Insurance Card.
Paper
A pen or pencil. Also keep a
disposable camera in your car.
A list of telephone numbers that may
be necessary:
Your insurance agent.
Your lawyer.
Numbers for relatives in case the
police have to call someone because you
are incapacitated.
This Checklist. (Print a copy
for each car in your family.)
AT THE SCENE
Stop. See if anyone is injured. It
is a crime to leave the scene of a car accident if
someone is hurt or there is property
damage.
Get to Safety. Do not get involved in a second
accident. Get yourself out of harm's
way. Tell your passengers to get out of
harm's way. If your vehicle is in danger of
getting hit by other vehicles, get out of the car
and go to someplace safe. Get away from the
road. If there is a guardrail, climb over to
the side away from the road. Do not stand
behind the car. Do not stand on the side of
the car where traffic is going by.
Call 911. Do not
hang up until the operator tells you. Tell
the operator:
Your name.
Your location. (Town,
street, nearby streets, closest house number.)
If anyone is hurt and what
the injuries are.
The number of the phone that
you are calling from.
Use Your Emergency Kit.
Place your flares or your reflective triangle far
enough away from your car so that oncoming drivers
have plenty of time to notice and move over.
If it is dark, switch on your flashlight so that
oncoming drivers notice you.
Give Assistance.
Do not move anyone unless
necessary to get them to safety.
To stop heavy bleeding, apply
pressure with a clean bandage, towel, or piece
of clothing.
Talk calmly to injured
persons to help keep them from going into
shock.
Do Not Discuss How the
Accident Happened Except with the Police.
Do not discuss with other drivers or anyone else
how the car accident happened. Avoid
arguments. Concentrate on recording
information. Answer the police officer's
questions. If you are arrested, stop
answering questions.
Do Not Say You Caused the
Accident. Car accidents happen
quickly. Things that contributed to the
accident may not be immediately obvious.
Do Not Move the Vehicles Until
The Police Tell You. On a limited access
highway (like I-84, I-91 or I-95) the law requires
you to move your car out of the way of traffic if
there are no injuries and you can move the car
safely. On other roads, do not move your car
until the police tell you. Use flares or a
reflective triangle to warn oncoming
motorists. Ask other drivers not to move
their cars as well, but do not argue if someone
gets belligerent.
Take Pictures. Keep
a disposable camera or a cheap digital camera in
your car. If you have no camera, use a cell
phone that takes pictures. Watch out for
traffic when taking pictures. Takes pictures
of:
Damage to vehicles.
Damage to guard rails, poles,
trees or anything else.
License plates of other
vehicles.
Skid marks.
Nearby street signs.
Location of the vehicles
(move far enough away so the picture shows
where on the road the vehicles are located).
Exchange Information.
Give and get information to identify everyone
involved in the car accident, including passengers
and witnesses. If drivers or passengers
refuse to give you information, ask the police
officer for the information. Write down the
number of passengers in all the vehicles involved
and note their sex and approximate ages.
Drivers should
exchange the following information:
Name.
Address.
Drivers license number.
Insurance company name
and policy number.
Name and address of the
owner of the vehicle.
License plate number of
the vehicle.
Names of passengers.
Ask witnesses
for the following information:
Name.
Address.
Telephone numbers,
including home, work and cell phone.
A description of what
they saw. (You can ask the witnesses
to mail or e-mail you this information.)
AFTER THE ACCIDENT.
Get Medical Attention. Our
experience as personal injury lawyers has been
that after an accident many people— even
though shaken up—do not
immediately get medical attention because they
have no open cuts or fractures.Many
clients tell us that only after a few hours or a
day goes by do they begin to feel strains and
sprains from the accident.Sometimes
people suffer internal injuries in an accident
without knowing it.If you have any discomfort at all following a car accident,
see a doctor.
Call an Accident Lawyer.If you are
injured, contact an accident lawyer as soon as
possible.Waiting
too long can create problems.For
example:
Important deadlines go by that may
keep you from being able to file a personal
injury claim against the person who may be
responsible for the car accident.
Important evidence cannot be
obtained, such as pictures of fresh injuries
or ofdamage
to the vehicles.Heavily
damaged vehicles may be moved to out-of-state
recycling yards and become unavailable for
photographing..
Witness move away or forget important
details of the accident.
Call Your Insurance Company.Insurance
policies require that drivers report an accident
as soon as possible.However,
you may want to ask your lawyer to call your
insurance company for you.This way,
you can make sure that only the necessary
information is given out and that it is given only
to the right people.If you do
call, remember:
Do not tell your company you were at
fault in the accident.
Tell your company you do not want the
call recorded.
If you have an lawyer, give the
company the lawyer’s name and telephone
number and tell the company to call your
lawyer.
Do Not Discuss the Case If Anyone
Calls You.Remember:
You are not required to speak to
anyone other than your insurance company about
the accident.
If someone calls you about the case,
make sure the person is from your insurance
company.Check by asking for a telephone number
and call the number back.
Do not get persuaded, tricked or
confused into talking to the other driver’s
insurance company or to an investigator.
Take Care of Your Car.If you
hire Serrano & Serrano to represent you for
injuries caused by a car accident, we do not
charge you for helping you get the other driver’s
insurance company to pay for your car’s repair
(or for its value if it is a total loss) and to
pay for a rental.We can also recommend reputable auto body
repair shops.
To protect your car after an automobile accident,
take these steps:
If your car was towed to a garage or
yard from the scene, get your car out as soon
as possible to avoid storage charges, which
can add up quickly
Arrange for a rental car.Your
company may provide a rental under your
policy.The
other driver’s company may pay for the
rental if they agreed that their driver was at
fault.Check
with your insurance company to see if you need
to purchase extra insurance from the rental
agency.
Have the damage to your car looked at
by an adjustor from your insurance company or
from the other driver’s company if they
agreed that their driver was at fault.We
recommend having the adjustor look at the car
at the auto body shop where you will get it
fixed. Do not discuss the car accident
with the adjustor.
Look up your car’s value online if
it is a total loss to make sure you are
getting paid a fair amount.
Help Your Lawyer Collect Evidence.The days
immediately following a car accident are the most
crucial time to gatherand preserve
evidence.Help
your lawyer by doing the following:
Write down everything you remember
about the accident and give the statement to
your lawyer.
Give your lawyer the names and
addresses of any witnesses.
Give your lawyer any pictures of
vehicle damage, the accident scene or your
injuries.
If no photographs have yet been
taken, make arrangements for your lawyer to
get pictures of vehicle damage or of injuries.
Keep a diary of how your pain and
injuries affect you each day and give the
diary to your lawyer.
When You Need a Car Accident
Lawyer,
Rely on Us for Skill,
Determination and Experience.
