Important Records You Should Collect after a Car Accident

A car accident can leave you with injuries and losses that will require some legal consideration.

As the injured party, you should begin to collect important paperwork as soon as you can.  This will help assist your attorney get a jump start on your case. Here is a list of the important documents you should collect after a severe car crash.

Police Report

Once an accident occurs, you should contact emergency services to come to the accident scene. The police officers dispatched to the scene will likely interview you and the involved drivers, passengers, and eyewitnesses about the happening of the accident. Additionally, they will collect all the relevant information like contacts, driver and vehicle registration, date, and location of the accident. They will record all this information in their report.

Get a copy of this report and send it to your attorney. An attorney can assess the report and verify if the information presented is true. If something is incorrect about the report, let your attorney know as soon as possible. It may be possible to have the report corrected or amended to accurately reflect what happened. 

Photographic Evidence

If possible, you should take some pictures and videos of the accident scene and vehicles involved in the collision. Ensure you capture as many angles as possible. The photos and videos can serve as visual aids to confirm the severity of the accident and the significance of the property damage.

As a precaution, do not post the photos or videos to social media sites. Most importantly, do not post a photo or video of yourself after the accident. The second party's attorney or insurance company can use your social media post as evidence that you were okay after the accident and argue for less compensation.

Vehicle Assessment Report

You should have a professional vehicle assessment team evaluate the amount of damage your vehicle received during the accident.

Your insurance company will be the first party that examines your vehicle's condition after the accident. They will generate a report for you and forward it to your contact email or postal address. However, if you disagree with their assessment, then a second and third opinion from a body repair shop might give you a different assessment of the damage received.

The assessment report should include a full list of every item damaged in the accident and should estimate the costs to repair or replace the damaged parts. This report will help you include the compensation for the property damages you suffered.

Medical Report

You should visit a hospital, urgent care or doctor as soon as possible after an accident, even if you think you do not have any injuries. You can suffer both visible and hidden injuries after an accident. Obviously, visible injuries are easy to spot. However, hidden injuries like concussions, disc herniation, internal bleeding, and torn ligaments will require a professional assessment. Any medical reports will also support your claim for personal injuries and will assist in getting you compensation. 

Work Report

The final report to include in your pile of evidence is a review of your leave of absence from your organization's human resources department and the pay slip for previous wage payments. This report provides an overview of the lost wages you incurred after the accident if it affected your ability to return to work.

Contact us at Jarve Granato Starr LLC to receive legal assistance with an automobile accident compensation claim.