How to Handle a Car Accident

Dealing with a car accident is not easy. If you were harmed in the accident, the problem will be even more complex. Being in an accident was probably the last thing you expected. You were going about your day as usual when it happened.

If the crash was severe, you may have first found out about it in the hospital. Indeed, you may not be able to think clearly and rationally in the direct aftermath of such an accident. You may need to go through a range of medical procedures to restore your health. You will then need time to recover and regain your strength. It is during this time, while you are convalescing, that you should think about the financial impact of the accident.

The Cost of a Car Accident

You will not know fully what you have lost owing to the accident until you have been medically treated, released, and sent home for recovery. The days you have had to take off work or the loss of your job because of excessive absence will hit hard. The expense of the medical treatment will also begin to weigh on you. If you required an extensive procedure, your health insurance may not cover all of it. The prescription drugs you will need to take in the near-term will also be costly.

The emotional and psychological toll on you and your family must also be considered. A car accident is a serious disruption to your life. The financial pressure resulting from this single event can erode and destroy all that you have labored to build. If your injury has led to the loss of your livelihood, the psychological devastation that comes with that can be measured. In other words, it is possible to demand compensation for the emotional suffering you have had to endure because of the accident.

Reckless and Negligent Drivers

Some people drive without any concern for others on the road. They are willing to violate traffic laws and make risky maneuvers that put people at risk. They are reckless, and when their bad behavior causes an accident, they ought to be held accountable.

The negligent are also dangerous drivers. These are people who will not let the act of driving keep them from conversing with passengers or sending text messages. The latter is an especially bad habit. It is against the law in many locales to text while driving, but people do it anyway. Some individuals are unable to control the itch to text or read new messages received. They do it so compulsively that they may not even realize they are driving, that their eyes are not on the road, and that they are putting people in danger.

Drivers who are in the habit of putting their attention everywhere except the road should be held accountable when they cause accidents. Even if you are a safe driver, it is difficult to protect yourself against those who refuse to be bound by the rules of the road. If their inattention has led to an accident that has caused you serious pain and brought complete ruin to your life, then you should seek damages. The best means to do so is through their insurance company.

The Aftermath of a Car Accident

It will take some time to heal from your injuries. But once you think you are ready to begin proceedings against the person who caused the accident, you should contact a car accident personal injury lawyer. Among all the people you will need to deal with—your insurance company, the other driver, and their insurance company—the car accident personal injury lawyer you hire will be the only one looking out for your interest.

The first thing they will do is get a sense of how the accident happened. They will want to hear all that you recall of the incident—from the time just before the crash to what you recollect of your treatment. This will be the starting point of the independent investigation they will launch into the case and the legal strategy they will need to put together.

The Los Angeles personal injury attorney you hire will be sympathetic to all what you have gone through. They will take the time to listen and to show compassion for the troubles that the accident has introduced to your life. But in the end, your lawyer is your advocate. Their main job is to get you money, so that you can service your hospital bills and begin the slow process of putting your life back together.

To do this, they will need to take on the company that insures the other driver.

Taking on the Insurance Company

If the other driver was at fault for the accident, their insurance should offer you a settlement. An accident that was caused by extreme recklessness which led to you being grievously injured compels a high-dollar offer. However, this will not happen. The insurance company will make you fight for every penny you deserve. The Los Angeles accident attorney you hire should be prepared for such a struggle.

Most insurance companies have a standing policy of offering the least amount of money possible. No matter how badly the injuries you sustained in the crash, they will find ways to short-change you. They are counting on the fact that you are likely to be desperate for cash after the accident. If the accident has left you with a permanent disability, you will be in even greater need of assistance.
Do not allow yourself to be intimidated or boxed-in by your circumstances. You need not accept the first offer made to you or any offer that does not meet your needs.

It is important to leave all negotiation and communication with the insurance company to your Los Angeles accident attorney. Indeed, you should say nothing directly to the company. Every word you say can be taken into evidence and used against you in the ongoing negotiation. To prevent confusion, you should defer to the expertise of your attorney.

Proving Your Case

Not all accident settlements are the same. As was mentioned before, an accident that was aggravated by recklessness and negligence on the part of the other driver will allow you to demand a higher settlement. The job of your auto injury attorney will be to prove that the accident could have been avoided; that it was the result of the driver’s inattention and lawlessness.

Your attorney will determine the circumstances that led to the accident by investigating the evidence left at the scene, interviewing people who witnessed the accident, and making inquiries into the driver. They will do this by putting their in-house investigators on the case.

If the person who hit you drank alcohol before the accident, it will come out in the investigation. If they were too tired to be on the road, your lawyer will know about it. The auto injury attorney you hire will also hire experts who can reconstruct the events that led to the accident. This can provide compelling proof that your version of events is the correct one.

You should not resign yourself to debt and despair in the wake of an auto accident. You should seek justice by hiring a car accident lawyer.

 

You must be logged in to post a comment Login