Accident Lawyers, abogados de accidentes, are legal professionals with experience in helping clients seek justice after an accident. If you were involved in a car accident, you may be wondering when you should reach out to a lawyer. Read our guide below for the answer you’re looking for as well as other information you’ll need.
Abogados de Accidentes: How Soon After a Crash Should You Call an Accident Lawyer?
You should contact an accident lawyer immediately after your accident occurs. The longer you wait, the more difficult it will be to gather all the pertinent evidence you need to argue your case in court. That’s why it’s important to get the process started as soon after the accident as possible. Even if you are in the care of a medical professional following the accident, you should seek to make contact with a lawyer in the meantime.
Steps to Take After an Accident
Alert the Authorities
The first step to take after an accident occurs is to call emergency services. This will ensure that an ambulance is sent to deal with any injuries on the scene and police arrive at the accident to ensure the area is safe. Even if the accident is minor, it’s still important to contact emergency services.
Not only will bringing emergency services onto the scene help to ensure the safety of everybody involved, but it will also help to create a clear record of what occurred. Police will create a detailed report of what they observe at the site of the accident. This will create an unbiased, detailed record that will be useful in proving your case later on down the line.
Exchange Information with Other Parties Involved
When an accident occurs, it’s only natural for emotions to be running high. However, it’s important that you don’t let the emotions of the moment get the better of you. Reacting with anger could only worsen the situation. Instead, take a deep breath and take a moment to collect yourself so that you don’t do anything that could damage your case later.
Instead of lashing out emotionally, calmly approach any other drivers involved in the accident. You’ll want to exchange information so that you can remain in contact as anything that follows the accident is resolved. This includes exchanging phone numbers, insurance providers, and other relevant information.
Gather Contact Information from Witnesses
While authorities are important for establishing a record of what happened free from the biases that those involved in the accident might have, they aren’t the only source of information you can draw from. Third-party witness testimony can be a valuable resource that will help the court ascertain the full extent of what happened.
Immediately after the accident, look for witnesses that are willing to provide testimony as to what happened. These can be other drivers that were present in the area, bystanders in buildings or outdoor spaces near the scene of the accident, or any other people who are around. Exchange contact information so that you can get a hold of these witnesses when building your case.
Photograph the Scene of the Accident
While your account and the account of others present at the scene of the accident are important, other forms of evidence will be necessary to effectively argue your case. Photographs can be a useful piece of evidence to bring up in court, showing irrefutable evidence of what occurred in the accident.
Try to take photographs of the accident from multiple angles. This will allow for a more complete recreation of events for the courtroom later, lending more weight to your side of the case.
Get Medical Attention
The most important thing to do following an accident is to ensure everybody involved has the medical attention they need. Seek medical attention promptly as waiting too long could worsen the extent of the injuries and the amount of time and treatment needed to restore the injured person to full health.
Even if there are no apparent injuries resulting from the accident, it’s important to seek advice from a medical professional. The effects of injuries from things like whiplash may be subtle at first but can worsen if they go untreated. In addition, seeking medical treatment creates a provable record of the damage you suffered as a result of the accident.
Reach Out for Legal Assistance
Even if the circumstances of your accident seem straightforward enough, the laws relevant to car accidents can be quite complex. You shouldn’t have to fight for the justice you deserve alone. Experienced abogados de accidentes can provide you with the legal advice you need so that you can get the full extent of what you’re owed following an accident, going some way to correct the injuries, expenses, and emotional damage suffered as a result of the accident.
Contacting an experienced lawyer as soon as possible after an accident will get you on the path toward the justice you seek. Don’t delay; the sooner you begin your fight for justice, the better your chances of success will be.
