What To Do After a Loudoun County Car Accident

Although often confusing and stressful, the time immediately following a car accident can also have a big impact on your injury claim. As a result, it is important that you know what steps to take and avoid making any mistakes that could end up costing you later on. To learn more or discuss the facts of your case more specifically consult with a Loudoun County car accident attorney today.

First Steps to Take

The first thing a person should do following a car accident in Loudoun County is call the police and, if they are hurt, call an ambulance. Then they should get their insurance information and exchange it with the other driver involved. They should take pictures of their own car to assess or document any damage to their car and pictures of the other person’s car to document damage of that car.

When the police arrive, they should cooperate with the police. If they are hurt, they should ask for an ambulance and follow the direction or instructions of the ambulance workers.

There is no particular order to doing these things, but a person should do them as best they can. The first thing is to call the police, take pictures, or exchange insurance information. It doesn’t matter the sequence of the steps.

Importance of Seeking Medical Attention

If a person feels any pain at all, they should seek medical attention instead of shrugging it off and hoping it feels better. The sooner a person seeks medical attention, the sooner they come under the care of medical professionals who are able to tell the person what steps to take to heal properly, or tell them if there are any health problems resulting from the car accident.

If a person minimizes their own injuries and hopes they get better over time without taking any steps, they are doing themselves a disservice because they are not allowing qualified people to treat their injuries. It also helps prevent any minor injuries from becoming major injuries.

Taking Photographs

A picture is unbiased and can always describe what words cannot. If two people look at the same damage, such as a bumper, they both see a dent in the bumper. One person can describe it as big; another can describe it as small. If there is a picture of it, there is no guessing because anyone can see it for themselves.

It is important when a person presents that to a judge or a jury, even though they were not at the scene, that they are able to see the damage to each vehicle. If pictures are not taken as soon as possible, the vehicles could be repaired. The person has lost the opportunity to present that damage forever.

Moving the Car Off the Road

A person should keep the car in the position it was in until the police officer comes so that they can observe the cars in their natural state following the accident. That might help the police officer who responds to decide who is at fault for the accident if it is not abundantly clear. So, it is always important to leave the car as it was at least prior to a law enforcement official arriving at the scene.

If the car is on a highway or a heavily-populated road, a person can put their emergency lights on. If they have any flares or cones in their trunk, they can use them.

If it is on the highway, the safest place is inside the car. A person does not want to be on the side of the road or standing between the cars because they could potentially be hit by another car. It is still best to leave the cars where they are.

Calling the Police

It is important to call the police to document how the accident happened. A person can document the name and address and insurance company of the other driver involved. The police often have the ability to speak to the people around it to see if there are any other witnesses to the car accident. They can help preserve the scene and document it so that if a person attempts to sue the other person, they can present a clear unbiased picture of how the accident happened instead of relying solely on their version of the facts.

Getting the Other Driver’s Information

It is important to get the information from the other driver after an accident. If the person does not have the information from the other driver; they will not know who to contact to settle or resolve their case. So, it is absolutely important to contact the other person.

If the other driver refuses to give out their information, a person can call the police and the police can force them to give the information. But if they refuse and try to leave the scene, the best thing is to write down as much detail as possible, the description of the person, the description of their vehicle, and their license plate number and state. This will help track down the owner of the vehicle and the driver of the vehicle.

Writing Everything Down

If a person was not at fault, they want everyone who was not there to understand that completely. The way to do that is by describing in as much detail as possible how the accident happened, where everyone was positioned before and after the accident, and what they were doing up until the accident.

It is important for to write all this down as soon as possible so as to be able to tell it to their attorney who can tell it to the insurance adjuster, defense attorney, or a judge and jury so that everyone will know what happened.

Contacting an Attorney

A person should contact an attorney as soon as possible after they are injured as a result of another’s negligence, so they can investigate and help document the potential claim.

Loudoun County Car Accident Attorney