Ensure Safety:

• Check yourself and your passengers for injuries, then call 911 if medical attention is needed.
• Turn on your hazard lights and set up flares or warning triangles if you have them.
• If possible, turn on your hazard lights to alert other drivers.

Call the Police:

• If there are no injuries, it is still recommended to contact the police. Even with minor accidents, a police report can be vital for insurance claims and legal protection.
• Cooperate with the law enforcement and provide an accurate account of the accident

Document the Accident:

• Carefully take photographs of the accident scene, including damage to all vehicles involved, any injuries, license plates, and road conditions. Always be aware of your surroundings as this is an accident scene.
• Exchange information with the other driver, including names, contact details, insurance information, and vehicle details.
• Gather contact information from any witnesses, such as name, email, phone, and if applicable, the license plate, make, and model of their vehicle.

Notify Your Insurance:

• Report the accident to your insurance company as soon as possible.
• Provide them with all information you collected, including the police report number.

Seek Medical Attention:

• Injuries may appear later as your adrenaline may postpone the true impact of the accident on your body. Visit a healthcare provider to check for any potential injuries that may not be immediately apparent.
• Keep records of all medical treatments and expenses, as they can be crucial for insurance claims and potential legal actions.

Contact an Attorney:

• It is free to speak with an attorney about your auto accident, find out from them what your options are going forward.
• The opposing insurance is already working to minimize or even dismiss your claims, speak to someone that can fight on your behalf.

The correct answer, is that all cases are different. That may not be the response you wanted to hear but it is the truthful one. Personal injury claims can take anywhere from a few months to multiple years to come to a resolution. Law firms are working behind the scenes while you are healing from your injuries. Once you are done treating for your injuries, the law firms then go into full negotiation mode. If those negotiations yield results that are not fair to their client, they then move forward to litigation. With that said, the average settlement timeline for most accident victims, is between 6-18 months.

Yes, there are many potential options to help you with the growing medical bills stemming from your car accident. This is where an attorney also assists you by helping to take some of the financial stress off your plate. Most states allow partners to send over a letter of protection (LOP) or lien, which notifies your medical providers that the medical bills that have accrued because of your car accident. This allows you to get the proper treatment you need, and the medical bills will be addressed once your accident claim has come to a resolution. It is free to consult with an injury attorney, and once you hire a lawyer, it costs you nothing to ask about your medical bills or any other topic related to your accident.

Yes, it is handled as a separate claim independent of your injury claim. Getting your vehicle fixed or replaced is more immediate as injury claims usually take longer because you are in treatment for your injuries. That process could take weeks or even months. If you have an attorney for your injury claim, it would be wise to ask them any questions that you may have about getting your property damage resolved. Make sure whatever the “at-fault” driver’s insurance gives you to sign, only deals with the property damage portion of your auto accident claim. Some insurance companies may push this as just property damage but have worded it in a way that also resolves your injury claim.

Absolutely not! Please do not be lured by these misleading ads, where “actors” say they were in a minor accident and received a 6-figure check only a couple of months after their accident. It is false and that is not the way the personal injury litigation process works. partners must first verify the facts of your case; assess your injuries and the total amount of care you need to get back to as close to normal. Then they must look at the possible recovery available from the “at fault” drivers’ insurance. It would be great if the legal system worked that way, but most insurance companies will drag this process out as long as they can. This is yet another reason you need a lawyer to not only fight for your best interests but keep your claim moving forward.