Of our readers love driving. When you’ve got this kind of passion though, it can be easy to forget that driving isn’t all fun and games. An unexpected car accident can leave you feeling shaken and stressed. While not exactly likely, accidents do happen. Even if you’ve never had a single close call, you need to know how to act when an accident happens.
The first thing to do, if you can, is to move your car into a safe place. Accidents obviously pose a danger to the people directly involved. However, after a collision, the wreckage can cause a serious hazard on the road. If it’s possible, move your car somewhere where it won’t cause any further danger. If you have to stay where you are, turn on the hazards to draw attention to your car. Whether you move it or not, come to a stop, check if it’s safe to get out of the car, then do it. If you have a warning triangle or something similar, set this up in an appropriate place.
Image by Wikipedia
Your next step should be to call the police to the scene. This applies even if there’s no serious damage or injury. Police reports can be very helpful later when you’re dealing with your insurance company or the other drivers involved. When talking to the authorities, try to cooperate in a calm, impartial way. Answer all of the questions you’re given in detail, without blaming other drivers or admitting fault yourself. The police will judge the scene objectively. Around this time, it might be a good idea to gather some info concerning the accident. Get the names of the people Most who were directly involved, license plate information and insurance info. Just to be safe, ask for the names and badge numbers of any police officers involved. This information will be available to you after the incident, but in some cases, it helps to gather it immediately.
If you sustained a serious injury in the accident, then you may want to look into the possibility of compensation. Depending on your insurance, you might have a pretty nice settlement on the table already. However, this can vary greatly depending on the minute details of the case. Your best option might be pursuing a personal injury case. You’re probably aware of how big of an industry personal injury law is. While all the adverts get across how easy it is to win compensation, the reality is usually different. Before talking to a solicitor, do all the research you can into your case, and the strength of your legal position. If you’re legally due compensation, then it’s a good idea to pursue it. However, if you’re at fault, taking legal action could end in disaster.
Read through these steps a few times. If and when an accident strikes, you’ll know exactly how to act. Serious car accidents can leave you extremely shaken and confused. However, if you can keep your head when others can’t, the situation will be much safer than it would otherwise.
