It may be a morbid thought, but it’s always best to be prepared. Car accidents are unfortunately becoming more and more prevalent across the world, and with car ownership at an all-time high, the stats are only going to go one way.
So whether you just scratch your paintwork, or your car is a write-off; or if you’ve just had a minor scratch or someone has been seriously injured, you still need to be aware of the necessary actions in the immediate aftermath of a car crash.
We have compiled a list of five things you absolutely must do in the event of a car accident, we know it’s not the most pleasant of thought processes, however, if it ever happens you will be delighted you were armed with the required knowledge. So read on and be fully prepared if the worse should happen:
1) Check EVERYONE’S state of health
Instantly after the accident, check how severely you are hurt. If you have no injuries, or they are very minor, move on to everyone else involved, check if there are any serious injuries and try to be calm enough to mentally record the injuries because when you call the ambulance and police they may well ask for such details.
2) Call the police
Call an ambulance first of course if one is required. Then you should consider calling the police. Remember, more often than not it’s a legal requisite to call the police but this should be an absolute must for everyone if injury is involved or the situation is dangerous. Be calm on the call, don’t confirm or deny any responsibility but be sure to inform the police of any and all injuries. Confirm with them if an ambulance has been called too.
3) Record and document EVERYTHING
Get your smartphone out and start snapping, also write a timeline of every event however innocuous you may think it is at the time. This is paramount when you have legal or insurance issues later down the road. Pay particular interest to things like license plates of the vehicles involved; names, addresses and contact numbers, weather conditions and create a diagram of what actually happened.
4) Contact an attorney
If all goes well, then you’ll have nothing to worry about, however, an attorney can really look after you if an accident was serious or the circumstances could lead to legal proceedings. An experienced San Antonio auto accident attorney is a great example of such a helpful individual. Within minutes he or she will advise you of the correct steps to take – ensuring that any unforeseen future issues are resolved much more efficiently than if you had to deal with everything yourself.
5) Contact your insurance company
More often than not an insurance company has details embedded in the small print of your insurance contract stating that you must communicate with them directly within hours of any accident, regardless of the seriousness. So make sure you do so.
I hope this information will allow you to deal calmly with any road accidents you have in your life. Safe driving.
