Being involved in an accident with a truck on the road can be terrifying. However, no matter how scary it might be, you must remain calm and proceed cautiously. According to lawyers at Roberts | Jeandron Law, many truck accident victims don’t realize that what they do at the accident can drastically influence their case.
To get compensation for your injuries, property damage, medical bills, lost wages, pain, and suffering, here are three things you must have when a truck accident happens.
When you are involved in a truck accident, there are three things you must have:
- Stay at the scene of the accident until help arrives to avoid criminal charges for a hit-and-run. Call 911 to report the accident to the police and get an ambulance to the scene if anyone is hurt. Seek medical attention for yourself or anyone else injured.
- Important documentation, including your driver’s license, insurance information, and vehicle registration. You will need to share this information with the police, who respond to your accident.
- Experienced truck accident lawyers to handle your case. You are entitled to receive financial compensation from the trucking company that caused your injuries, and experienced lawyers can help you obtain it.
In addition to these three things, there are other important steps to take after a truck accident. Document the evidence at the scene, including taking photos of the damage to your vehicle and any injuries you sustained.
Write down contact information for witnesses. Do not move your damaged vehicle, as experts will be able to use the police report’s details about vehicle position, skid marks, tire tracks, and more to reconstruct the accident scene.
Police Report and Medical Reports
If you are involved in a truck accident in California, then you will need to call authorities to the accident scene. The police will document your accident and take statements that can be used when you file a personal injury claim later. If your car is shaking after an accident, you must immediately fix the issue.
Apart from this, paramedics might arrive at the scene if the accident is severe or if you or another party requested it. Medical check-ups are crucial in any car accident, especially with a truck, due to their volume and higher probability of sustaining severe injuries.
You should let medics take a look at you even if you feel fine because some injuries aren’t visible, or they might manifest themselves later. Apart from this, you will need medical reports to prove your personal injury claim.
Under the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), you are entitled to receive copies of your medical records and copies of police records to help you in your claim.
The Other Driver’s Information
Another vital aspect that you need to consider after a truck accident occurs is obtaining the truck driver’s information, which includes phone number, name, license plate number, insurance provider, policy number, truck company information, and their insurance provider’s phone number.
Apart from this, you should also consider writing down the contact information of the other drivers involved in the accident, or eyewitnesses, because they will also be beneficial to your case later.
Legal Representation
Lastly, you will need legal representation after a truck accident occurs. This is because you must prove fault against the negligent driver and not fall into their insurance companies’ tactics of depriving you of your rightful compensation.
Truck accidents almost always result in serious injuries, some of which insurance liability might not cover entirely, and you might need to sue the other driver to get full compensation for your losses.
With a personal injury lawyer by your side, you can prove fault which is crucial in Californian truck accidents since the state of California follows the comparative-negligence system. Through this system, if you are found partly liable for the accident, you will lose a part of your compensation based on the percentage of fault assigned to you.
A personal injury lawyer will help you prove that you weren’t at fault, and even if you can’t prove this, your lawyer will use all sorts of legal strategies to ensure that you are fairly compensated.
A lawyer can build you a case so strong that you might not even need to go to trial, as they will also negotiate with the insurance firms on your behalf. If you cannot reach a settlement outside the court, then your lawyer will prepare your case for trial.
