Involved in a Car Accident in Palm Beach County?
While it isn’t pleasant to think about, you’re likely to be involved in at least one accident throughout your driving career. How you respond to that accident will significantly impact any court cases that are a result of the crash. Here are 10 things you’ll want to avoid doing at all costs after being involved in an accident in Palm Beach County.
Leaving the Accident Scene
After being involved in a car accident in Palm Beach County, the last thing that you want to do is leave the scene. Instead, it would help if you stayed at the location of the accident until the police arrived. It’s important to realize that leaving the scene of an accident can be punishable by law as either a misdemeanor or a felony charge. Therefore, the only reason you should be leaving the scene of an accident is getting emergency medical assistance.
Forgetting to Collect Info
Any Palm Beach County car accident attorney will tell you that collecting information at the scene of an accident is an absolute necessity. You’ll want to collect data from the other driver or drivers that were involved in the accident. This data includes their name, address, phone number, insurance information, and driver’s license number.
Apart from getting information for the other drivers, you also want to get information for any witnesses there. Make sure that you have both their name, address, and phone number so that your lawyer can quickly contact them to be a witness at your trial if the incident goes that far. Lastly, you want to collect information from the officer who is reporting on the accident. Most officers will have a card that they could hand you with their necessary information on it.
Not Contacting the Police
When in doubt, it’s always a good idea to contact the police when you’re involved in a car accident in Palm Beach County. The police will do an accident report that can help to clarify what happened for your insurance company. This report will have vital information, including the police officer’s information and the other driver’s vehicle and insurance information. If you fail to contact the police after being involved in an accident, it can make it more difficult for the insurance companies to decide on who is at fault for the accident.
Misjudging Your Injuries
Whenever you’re involved in a car accident in Palm Beach County, your adrenaline is likely pumping. When this happens, it can override pain signals throughout the body. You may not realize until hours later that you have been injured in the accident when your adrenaline level goes down. It’s best to take a few moments and look over your body to ensure there are no apparent injuries.
If you feel any pain coming from anywhere, you should have it checked out by an urgent care center or hospital. Getting your injuries checked out directly after the accident can help solidify the presence of those injuries for the insurance company so that there’s no confusion about what they’re covering. You don’t want to wait and seek assistance three or four days later, as the insurance company may deny paying for your medical needs.
Admitting Fault
It is never a good idea to admit fault when you’re involved in an accident. Remember that you are only one perspective of the entire accident scene. You don’t want to jump to conclusions and admit your fault for the accident, as this could come back to bite you in the future.
It’s imperative to note that it’s a common habit of most people to apologize even when they don’t believe they’re at fault. The natural words of “I’m sorry” can be depicted as you claiming fault for the accident by the insurance company. Be very mindful of the things that you say while you’re at the accident scene so that they cannot use any of that information against you in the future.
Talking to the Other Driver’s Insurance Company
It’s crucial to remember that the other driver’s insurance company is trying to pay out the least amount of money possible. For this reason, they will try to misconstrue the information that you’re giving to them to support their claims. Therefore, it’s best to leave speaking to the other driver’s insurance company up to your lawyer. Or, make sure that your lawyer is present when you’re talking to the other driver’s insurance company so that they can advise you on the appropriate wording to get your points across.
Not Reporting the Accident to Your Insurance Company
After you’re involved in an accident, it’s best to contact your insurance company to let them know what’s going on. This information will help to start the claims process promptly. If you don’t reach your insurance company until weeks or months later, they’re likely going to deny your claim from the get-go.
While you may believe that the accident was the other driver’s fault, it’s best to alert your insurance company anyway. They can help walk you through the process and ensure that the other insurance company does its job correctly.
Not Taking Photos
Pretty much everyone has a cell phone that can take videos and photographs. You never want to leave the scene of an accident without taking videos and pictures, as such evidence is key to any sort of car accident court case. When taking photos, make sure that you take photos of your vehicle and the other vehicle. Notate both license plate numbers and the extent of the damage to the vehicles.
If there’s any other damage that was created before the accident, you’ll want to note that as well. Make sure that you get pictures of the entire scene as well. You want to get as many pictures as possible to help depict what happened, as you won’t have a second chance to take photos once the accident is cleaned up by emergency personnel.
Trying to Clean Up the Scene
While it may be your first instinct to try to clean up the debris from the accident scene so that other drivers don’t run it over, you’ll want to resist doing so. The police officers who respond to the accident scene will need to see the entire debris field to properly fill out their accident report. You want to ensure that you get pictures of everything before having any of the debris removed. In addition, you want to leave the debris removal up to emergency personnel as they’re the ones that are experienced in handling auto accident clean-up on roadways.
Not Calling a Palm Beach County Car Accident Attorney
After being involved in an accident, it’s best to contact a Palm Beach County car accident attorney. They can help you talk to both insurance companies and to get your claim on its way. In addition, they can advise you on what you should say and what you should not say so that everything is handled with your best interest in mind.
Hopefully, you’ve come to learn the various things that you should not do after being involved in an accident. If you have questions regarding car accidents or other personal injuries, it’s always best to consult the Bodden and Bennet Law Group.
