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What Should You Do After The Accident?
If you have been involved in an accident, follow these suggestions to protect your legal rights:
1. Even if you feel you may be at fault, do not say so to anyone or agree with any person's suggestion that you could be at fault in any way. You may learn later that another person was equally at fault, or more so. How fault is determined in a court of law is often quite different than what a lay person would think would determine fault.
2. Be careful what you say about your injuries. Serious injuries do not always cause immediate pain or bloodshed. If you feel nothing unusual, say you will see your doctor to determine your injuries. Let him decide if you are injured after enough time has passed for all injuries to surface.
3. If there is the slightest chance you are injured, see your doctor right away, or the other side may argue that you could not have been seriously injured in this accident because you would have seen a doctor sooner.
4. In filling out paperwork in the doctor's office, be truthful and complete about prior injuries and claims. The other side will get copies of these records after your claim is received and look for inaccurate answers. They will then often argue that you cannot be trusted to tell the truth because you hid important medical events from your own doctor. List all prior injuries you do remember and use "about" in giving dates that you are not absolutely certain. Instead of "no" answers to questions about prior injuries, say you "do not remember any." If you remember any later, your may want to consider writing a note to the doctor describing the injury and the date and saying simply you forgot it when filling out the paperwork. You may want to ask that it be placed in your medical records so that they are accurate and complete.
5. Tell your doctor all your complaints without minimizing or exaggerating them. At every appointment tell the doctor about any change in your physical condition so the doctor can decide if it is caused by your accident. Do not discuss with your doctor whether or not you are considering hiring a lawyer. Be noncommittal. Some doctors are anti-plaintiff and may write down comments in the medical records that could harm your claim.
6. Do not miss appointments unless the reason is clear and understandable, such as a death in the family, a trip to visit an ill relative, and the like. If something serious comes up and you will miss an appointment, call and cancel the appointment as soon as you know of the conflict and explain the reason. 'No show' notes in the medical records without any excuse noted are often interpreted as evidence of minor injury - otherwise why would you not have kept the appointment?
7. Save everything the doctor or pharmacist gives you, including empty prescription bottles and any orthopedic devices such as crutches, collars, casts, and braces.
8. Write down important information about the accident. List names, addresses and telephone numbers of every witness to the accident, including those who came on the scene afterwards.
9. Take color photos and video tapes of your injuries, all property damage, the objects involved in the accident, and the accident scene soon before any evidence is lost.
10. Save everything that is even remotely related to the accident. Do not throw anything away. What may appear unimportant now could later prove critical facts about your case.
11. Keep a record of all time missed from work, the reasons you missed work, and any out-of-pocket payments, including receipts, for treatment and prescriptions.
12. Keep records of how to calculate the wages, salary, and benefits you lost as a result of your injuries. Save paycheck copies, performance evaluations, overtime records before the accident, disability notes, and return to work notes from your doctor. Note all overtime or bonuses lost and promotions or raises as a result of your inability to work. List any job training interrupted that would have given you a promotion. Explain any benefits delayed or lost as a result of your injuries.
13. Keep a daily record of how the accident has affected you, including pain, headaches, stress, depression, and inability to socialize with friends and family or do the things you do for recreation.
14. Consult an attorney immediately. The sooner your attorney begins working on your case, the better he can protect your rights - he may have a trained investigator take witness statements while witnesses' memories are fresh, have a trained photographer take photos and videos of important evidence, and do many other things to preserve the true facts.
15. Do not sign anything that says "release," "satisfaction," "assign," "full," "all," "total," "in full satisfaction of all claims," "payment of all claims," or any words or phrases similar to these in any way, even when printed on the back of a check. Insurance companies do not have your best interests at heart and are not required to explain documents to you or give you legal advice or even suggest that you may want to talk to an attorney. The adjuster's primary goal is to pay as little as possible on your claim. You are responsible under the law for reading and understanding everything you sign. The maxim "ignorance of the law is no excuse" is accurate.
16. Do not sign any papers without your attorney's approval, or you may be signing away your right to a full recovery.
Copyright 1994 - 2007 Clifford B. Rodgers.
Last Modified July 2, 2007
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