NEW ALBANY CAR WRECK ATTORNEY

Getting injured in a car wreck can be a traumatizing and painful experience. You will likely not know what to do when you find yourself in such a situation. But that is totally understandable. No one leaves their home, school, or office hoping to get injured or potentially killed in a car wreck. However, despite the shock and pain that comes with such accidents, knowing what to do could change the trajectory of the case.  

Call 911

This step is important even if you have not suffered any significant injuries. It is equally important even if the other party agrees to cooperate with you by providing their insurance information, driver's license, etc. The officers at the scene will write a report. This report could be crucial when you file a claim or lawsuit against the other driver.

Seek Medical Attention

You should get checked by a doctor even if you do not feel pain or discomfort. This is because your body will likely be in shock during the first few hours after an accident. For this reason, you may not process pain immediately, but that does not mean you are not injured.

Follow Your Doctor's Instructions

It is one thing to seek medical attention and a totally different thing to follow your doctor's instructions. One of the reasons insurance companies deny car accident claims is when patients fail to follow their doctor's instructions. In that case, the insurance provider would question whether the individual was truly injured or only sought medical attention to add more credibility to their case.

So if you get injured and your doctor tells you to visit a physical therapist twice a week, ensure you do that. And if you cannot make it for any reason, let your doctor know well in advance.

Be Careful What You Say

Car accidents can trigger various emotions within yourself. Therefore, do not admit liability for the accident if you feel scared, angry, sad, etc. This rule applies even if you feel partially responsible for the accident.

Collect Evidence of the Accident

You will need to have a lot of evidence to prove your case. For this reason, consider taking pictures or videos of the accident scene. If possible, collect the contact information of any witnesses to the accident.

The kind of evidence you may be able to collect will depend on how the accident occurred. For instance, if you suffered serious injuries that sent you into a coma, you may not be able to take pictures. But that does not mean you do not have a valid case.

Keep Important Receipts

Do not get rid of receipts of expenses deriving from the accident. These include but are not limited to your medical bills, cost of transportation to and from your medical appointments, wages paid to your caregiver, etc. It is also important to document every detail you can remember about the accident, including how it affected your life, wages, relationship with your friends, family, etc.

Contact a Car Wreck Attorney

When you contact an experienced attorney, they will review your case to determine whether it is valid. And if it is indeed valid, they will help you strengthen it by collecting crucial evidence. The attorney will also identify the liable parties, assess your injuries and damages, assist you in obtaining treatment, calculate the value of your case, and negotiate a favorable settlement on your behalf.

Suppose the liable party is unwilling to cooperate with your attorney. In that case, the lawyer might file a lawsuit against them, presenting the case before a judge or jury.

If you got injured in a car wreck caused by the other driver in New Albany, you would need to file a claim with the driver's insurance company. This is because Indiana is an at-fault state. This system requires accident victims to file their claims with the other party's insurance company after the accident.

Each insurance company has a different claims process. For this reason, it is important to know who the other driver's insurer is. You can obtain this information immediately after the accident (if it is not a hit and run and the other driver agrees to surrender it to you).

Remember when we mentioned the importance of calling 911? Many people believe that the police should only be involved when the other party refuses to cooperate, but that is not true. When the police are involved, they can obtain the other driver's insurance information, driver's license, and any additional information you need to file a claim.

You may contact the insurance company right after the accident. But you should not accept a settlement then.

During the initial conversation with the insurance agent, you must know what to say and what not. For example, do not tell the insurance agent that you feel okay. They will likely use your words against you when you file a claim.

Also, do not mention who is at fault for the accident. The insurance agent will definitely want to know the details of the accident, but you must be very careful when discussing this information.

When the insurer talks to you about the accident, it is not because they care so much about you and want to compensate you for your injuries (even though they might seem to care). Rather, it is because they hope you will say something that could potentially jeopardize your claim.

To further understand why you should be careful with the information you share with insurance companies after the accident, let's discuss the comparative negligence system in New Albany and throughout the state.

Comparative negligence is a legal concept that reduces the damages a plaintiff is entitled to based on their role in the accident. In other words, if you played a role in the accident, this could jeopardize the settlement amount you may be entitled to. There are three different types of comparative negligence: contributory negligence, pure comparative negligence, and modified comparative negligence.

Indiana uses the modified comparative negligence system. This system allows the plaintiff to recover compensation for their injuries as long as they are not 51% responsible for the accident. The court usually assigns fault based on a percentage system.

Let's say you were using your cell phone while driving and then got hit by a drunk driver. In that case, the court might rule that the drunk driver was 80% responsible for driving while drunk. This ruling means that you are 20% responsible for the accident. It also means that you can recover 80% of the compensatory damages from the other driver's insurance company.

Therefore, if the total value of your case was $1,000,000, you will only be able to recover $800,000 from the defendant. But if we reverse the roles, meaning you are 80% at fault for the accident, you cannot recover any compensation in Indiana because your percentage of fault is more than 51%.

Any experienced car accident attorney will tell you that insurance is a business like any other. They do not just settle claims because they have so much money to spend or they care so much about injured individuals. Rather, there is a catch behind every offer from an insurance company.

So when the insurance company wants to settle your claim immediately, chances are they know they are running out of time. But you should not be in a rush to settle. Instead, contact an experienced car wreck attorney in New Albany.

As mentioned earlier, one of the reasons the insurer will want to settle the claim immediately is because they know how serious your case is. They know they may have to pay you even more if you hire an attorney.

This is because car accident attorneys are familiar with the different tactics insurance providers use to undervalue a claim.

Pressuring you to accept a quick settlement is one of these tactics. Other tactics insurance companies might use include:

• Threatening to close to the case if you do not accept their offer
• Offering to settle the case when you are in dire need of money because you may not be able to make the right decisions
• Delaying the settlement to frustrate your efforts to recover what they potentially owe you
• Failing to conduct thorough investigations into your injuries
• Dismissing your case without a good reason or any reason whatsoever

If that is what you or your loved one is going through, an experienced attorney can help you fight against these tactics.

Morgan and Morgan is the largest personal injury law firm in the United States. Our attorneys serve clients from coast to coast, helping them secure the compensation they need and deserve. So if you or your loved one has been injured in a car wreck, here's an overview of how we might be able to help;

• We will review your case for free to determine whether you have a valid claim
• If the claim is valid, we can help you collect and preserve crucial evidence to strengthen your case
• We can also asses your damages and injuries, and help you get the treatment you need
• Our attorneys can handle complex paperwork on your behalf, ensuring you only focus on recovery
• We can also file a claim or lawsuit on your behalf and fight for you in and out of court

If you decide to let Morgan and Morgan handle your case, you will not pay us anything unless we win.

You can contact us any day, any time, by filling out our free case evaluation form. One of our legal representatives will contact you as soon as possible to discuss your case.