You just got into an accident, now what? No one plans to be in an accident. If we did, we’d have to rename them. Unfortunately, however, accidents are a part of driving. Whether a motorcycle, car, truck, or other vehicle, chances are you will be involved in an accident at some point in your lifetime. When this unwelcome intrusion happens to you, you need to know what to expect and what actions to take.
In the first installment of this series, we start at the very beginning, the scene of the crash. Chances are if you are reading this you have already been in an accident and you are no longer at the scene. If so, don’t worry if you didn’t do everything suggested here. That doesn’t mean that you don’t have a viable claim. These are simply the ideal actions to take at the scene of an accident. However, if you haven’t been in an accident yet, prepare yourself for the idea that as soon as an accident occurs, you need to become an investigator and start documenting the scene.
1. STOP AND STAY AT THE SCENE.
If, and only if, it is safe, LEAVE THE VEHICLES WHERE THEY ARE for a few minutes.
2. CALL 911.
While the vehicles are safely stopped, check all parties for serious injuries and call 911.
3. TAKE PICTURES AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
While the police and emergency personnel are on the way, TAKE PICTURES BEFORE MOVING THE VEHICLES. In addition to the vehicles themselves, also take pictures of any other visible evidence at the scene such as skid marks, crash debris, etc. You will also want pictures of the scene itself, placing the vehicles in perspective to the roadway or intersection and showing lighting conditions, weather conditions, stop signs, traffic signals, etc.
Where the vehicles end up after an accident is called “final rest”. As much as we wish it were not true, there is a significant percentage of at-fault drivers who will simply lie to law enforcement and their insurance companies about how the accident occurred. I can’t begin to tell you how many times we end up fighting over an issue that could have been resolved if there were pictures of the vehicles at final rest. Too many times vehicles are immediately moved after the accident and critical evidence showing who was at fault is lost. Not only are photos of the vehicles at final rest helpful to your attorney and the insurance company, but they are also extremely valuable if an expert is hired to reconstruct the accident.
4. MOVE THE VEHICLES OUT OF TRAFFIC.
Unless directed otherwise by law enforcement, and assuming that there are no critical injuries, you may now move the vehicles to a safe location out of the roadway and wait for first responders. However, try to stay as near to the scene of the accident as is safe and practical.
5. PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING.
Listen carefully to what the other driver(s), passenger(s), and/or witness(es) say and make a record of it as soon as you can. This especially applies to any admission of fault by another driver. This includes apologies. An apology is often considered an admission of fault by the party making it. These statements may become critical evidence in the weeks, months or even years to come. On the flipside, do not apologize for an accident you did not cause. As stated above, the other side may use your statement to blame you for the accident.
Warning: Given the technology available on our phones, you may be tempted to audio record these conversations. I suggest that you do not. Florida is a dual consent state when it comes to recording verbal conversations. Which means all parties involved must consent to the conversation being recorded. Recording a conversation without the other party knowing or against their will, could subject you to criminal charges. Simply writing down what was said as soon as you can, will help refresh you recollection later if you ever need to testify about the conversations.
6. DON’T FORGET THE WITNESES.
GET THE NAME, PHONE NUMBER, EMAIL ADDRESS, AND MAILING ADDRESS FOR EVERY WITNESS AT THE SCENE. Do not presume that law enforcement will get this information. The officer should document this information, but I have encountered numerous situations where the witnesses never appear on the accident report. At times this happens because the witnesses leave the scene before the officer arrives; other times the witnesses are left off the report because they told law enforcement that they did not want to be involved; or, sadly, law enforcement simply chose not to spend the time and effort necessary to collect the proper information. I’ve even seen crash reports where an officer failed to list all the passengers in the vehicles, thus leaving injured parties off the crash report altogether. So, be proactive at the scene and gather as much evidence as possible and don’t rely on the report to contain all the information you may need later.
7. BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU SAY ABOUT YOUR INJURIES.
Make sure to tell the reporting officer about any pain or injury you may be experiencing at the scene, even if you don’t think that they are serious. Typically, when someone is in an accident, there is an element of shock, and the resulting adrenaline prevents most people from feeling the true nature and extent of their injuries. Something that seems slight or minor at the scene may feel debilitating in the days following the accident.
Insurance companies often take the position that a client is faking or embellishing their injuries just to get a settlement. Later in the case, when trying to negotiate your claim with the insurance company, adjusters will often cite what you said to the officer at the scene as evidence that you were not really injured in the accident. So, if you feel anything at the scene, make sure to voice it and don’t be quick to dismiss or discount your injuries when you speak with the reporting officer.
8. DECIDE ON EMERGENCY MEDICAL CARE.
Assuming you are not critically injured, you will often have the choice whether you wish to be transported to a hospital emergency room via ambulance. This is ultimately a medical decision that only you can make after advice from the emergency medical personnel on the scene. However, you should be aware that a single ambulance ride typically costs upwards of $1,000.00. Further, hospital emergency rooms are designed to deliver lifesaving treatment, not pain care. As such, once they have established that your injuries are not life
threatening, they will discharge you with little to no treatment for the injuries causing you pain. The typical cost of their treatment will range between $4,000.00 to $6,000.00 for a single visit. This amount will be higher if advanced diagnostic testing was performed, such as a CT scan, MRI, etc.
You may be thinking that you are not concerned with the actual cost because you have health insurance, but what you may not know is that your health insurance will not be the first to pay your medical bills after a car accident. I will discuss this more in depth in Part II, but a part of your auto insurance called Personal Injury Protection (or PIP for short) will initially pay your medical bills related to the accident. The more of it that is used by the hospital the less that is available for you to get additional care.
So, if you are not sure whether you should take an ambulance to the hospital, you may wish to consider what I call the FOUR B’s. If you have a head injury that could involve your BRAIN, if you are having difficulty BREATHING, if you are BLEEDING, or if you may have a BROKEN bone, you should almost certainly be transported via ambulance to the hospital. If you are not facing any of these issues, you may be better served by self
reporting to an urgent care facility for examination or making an immediate appointment with a provider who specializes in treating accident patients. However, again, this is a medical decision that only you can make based on the uniqueness of your situation. This suggestion is not intended as medical advice nor to replace the advice of medical personnel on the scene.
9. FIGURE OUT WHAT TO DO WITH YOUR CAR.
Once you have collected evidence and addressed your need for medical care, you can turn your attention to your vehicle. If your car is inoperable, or you’re going to the hospital and do not have someone to drive your vehicle home, it will need to be towed from the scene. If you do not intervene, law enforcement will call a tow truck themselves. We call this the
“rotation wrecker”, because law enforcement has a list of providers in the area, and they rotate through them to respond to accident scenes.
Some of these wreckers are simply tow truck companies and others are from collision centers or body shops that can repair your vehicle. If the rotation wrecker picks up your vehicle, they will take it back to their business. Once there, your vehicle will be subject to storage fees for every day it remains at their facility. If you end up not having insurance to repair the vehicle, the fees can become very costly. The tow truck company does not have to release your vehicle until you pay for both the cost of the tow and any accumulated storage fees. However, if you have roadside assistance with towing, such as AAA, you can arrange for the vehicle to be towed to a location of your choosing, even your own home. This may save you headaches in the future but be aware that if the vehicle is inoperable and you have the vehicle towed somewhere that can’t repair it, you may need to have it towed again later.
10. MAKE SURE YOU GET YOUR COPY OF THE INFORMATION EXCHANGE
You should leave the scene of the accident with at least one page from the officer that will contain the names of the parties involved, a description of the vehicles and, perhaps most importantly, the insurance information for the vehicles. This will help your attorney start your case before the actual report is available. The full traffic crash report typically isn’t ready for several days or even weeks, so it is important to have this basic information from the beginning. Below is a redacted sample of what is typically printed by law enforcement at the scene and provided to the parties. As you can see it contains detailed information about the vehicles involved, the owners of the vehicles, the insurance information, and who the drivers were.
These are the major issues you will deal with at the scene of an accident. The bad news is that the journey of healing from your injuries and recovering your financial losses is a long one. The good news is you do not have to journey alone. My team here at Brewer Law Firm is here for you and we will help you navigate the many issues that lie ahead. I have over 15 years of experience representing accident victims. At my firm, you are a name, not a number. Your case will get the personal attention it deserves from the actual attorney handling your case. The sooner you get representation the better your chances of winning. Call my office at (813) 549-4529 to schedule a free consultation. REPRESENTATION IS FREE UNLESS YOU WIN. So don’t delay, call today.
Updated November 30, 2023
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