To get compensation after a car accident, you’ll have to file an insurance claim against the party that was at fault for your accident. This process can be difficult because it does require that you show evidence that the policyholder is at fault for your accident and therefore liable for your losses and damages. An auto accident lawyer in Atlanta can help you gather all the evidence that’s needed and make a convincing case to the insurance company for why they are responsible to take care of your losses and damages.
There are a few important steps to take immediately after an accident that will make a big difference to your ability to get all the compensation you are owed. Evidence is very important, so unless you are so badly injured in the accident that you need to be taken immediately to the hospital, if it’s possible for you to safely gather evidence, you should.
Obviously, your first step should be to call 911 to get medical help for anyone who needs it and to bring the police to the scene. You also need to move your vehicle out of the road if it is drivable. Once that is taken care of, your next step should be to exchange information with the other driver. Be sure to get the other driver’s name and contact information as well as their insurance information, and note down the make and model of their car and the license plate number. Be sure to share all this same information about you with the other driver.
Take pictures of the entire accident scene. Get pictures of the damage to both cars as well as the make, model, and license plates of the vehicles. Also, take pictures of the surrounding scene that show any skid marks or road obstacles, and if it’s possible to capture a picture that shows the weather conditions, do so if that was a factor (such as if it is raining heavily).
If anyone saw the accident, approach them politely and ask if they would be willing to explain to the authorities or an insurance company adjuster what they saw. If so, be sure to get their information so you can pass it on to your lawyer. Finally, note whether there are any cameras in the vicinity. These could be traffic cameras above you or on poles, dash cams inside either of the vehicles, or cameras on nearby buildings that might have captured the accident scene. You’ll tell your lawyer about all of this, and your lawyer can make sure all camera footage get saved so it can be used in proving your claim.
Once you have finished at the scene, even if you don’t believe you’ve really been injured badly, it’s now time to go to urgent care an emergency room. Tell them you were in a car accident so they know what to look for to make sure you’re OK. This is primarily for your health and safety: you may not realize how badly you’ve been injured because of adrenaline or because of a delay in the onset of symptoms. But you will also need the evidence from your medical records to show exactly what damages were caused by the accident, and the longer you delay in getting medical help, the easier you make it for the other side to claim that your injuries are not related to the accident.
The first step here is to file a claim with your own accident insurance company. Even if you were not at fault, you still need to let your insurance company know what happened and do it as soon as you can. Your insurance company will assign an adjuster to investigate the case and evaluate the evidence to determine liability. Once that is done, your insurance company will contact the insurance company of the at-fault driver.
However, you also want to consult a car accident attorney as soon as possible. Your attorney can also do an investigation, if that’s necessary, to show what really happened. If you are assigned more fault than you actually hold in the case, then your attorney can defend you against this. That’s important, because Georgia has a modified comparative fault system for insurance payments after accidents, which means that the insurance companies will investigate and then assign a percentage of fault to each driver. Your total damages and losses will be reduced by the same percentage as your fault in the accident, so it’s important that you be protected here.
As the insurance companies communicate with each other, bear in mind that they are essentially in negotiations. Neither wants to pay a dime more than they have to, and both are aware that if a deal isn’t worked out, they may be responsible to cover things they don’t want to cover or even find themselves in court. This can sometimes incentivize an insurance company to agree to give you more fault than you actually hold in order to “reach a deal.” You need the help of an experience lawyer to protect you from this and make sure that fault is clearly proven.
Once you’ve heard back from the insurance company, it’s time to begin negotiations for a settlement. It’s common for an insurance company to start with a fairly low offer. Usually, this is because they expect you to negotiate with them. Sometimes, it’s because they’re hoping that you don’t really understand your claim well enough to know that you should ask for more. They may be counting on your desperation for money or an improper calculation of your full damages.
It’s your lawyer’s job to protect you from signing any settlement that is not in your best interest. Once you sign, it’s all over: no matter how great your losses may be, you cannot get any more for them. That’s what makes it so very important that you only accept the settlement if both you and your lawyer are sure that it’s fair. Your lawyer will use knowledge of the law, negotiating skill, the evidence you gathered and their ability to interpret it, and sometimes also expert witness testimony to come to an agreement with the insurance company.
In some cases, thankfully fairly rare, a car accident case has to go to court. If the insurance company simply refuses to cover their policyholder or insists on blaming you for what was obviously not your fault, your lawyer may advise that you take your claim to court. Most of these claims are settled outside of court, and that’s usually the best choice for everyone involved. But there are always those cases that really can only be settled inside a courtroom. Ask your lawyer about whether this is a possibility in your case and for their advice on the wise course of action for you.
If you’ve been in an accident, don’t try to go up against the powerful insurance company on your own. Contact us today T. Madden & Associates, P.C., for a free case evaluation.
T. Madden & Associates, P.C has an answer for all of your legal questions! We are a Personal Injury firm, so we handle many types of injury cases from auto collisions to wrongful death! If you or someone you know is injured, T. Madden & Associates, P.C. can help.
We are proud to offer free case reviews to anyone who may have questions before getting started. Additionally, if we do take on your case, we promise we won’t charge you a penny unless we recover compensation for your claim.
Please contact our Atlanta attorneys online or by calling 833-PAID-123 to get started today.
