Car accidents are an unfortunate part of everyday life. These accidents lead to severe injuries that take months, sometimes years, to fully heal. Even if the accident doesn’t lead to a serious injury, it can still be a hassle to deal with. Here are some things to keep in mind the next time you are in an accident.
- Call the police. After you are in an accident, it is important to file a police report. When you file an insurance claim you will need the police report. While you do have to wait for the officer to arrive and to file the report, this report will be extremely beneficial to you in the long run, especially if you are deemed to not be at fault.
- Seek medical attention. If you are injured, seek medical attention as soon as possible. Your doctor’s determination of why you are hurt and their reasoning why you are hurt directly impacts your case and the value of your claim. Be sure to be honest with your doctor about how you got your injuries and where they came from.
- If you are partially at fault. Even if more than one party is at fault in the car accident, you may still be able to recover. In Louisiana, courts apply comparative negligence to determine damages. Louisiana has eschewed contributory negligence in situations of tort claims, i.e. personal injury claims resulting from car accidents and other types of incidents. This means that in an accident where two or more parties (including yourself) are deemed partially at fault, your reward for damages will be reduced by whatever percentage of fault you receive from the jury or judge. This means that you may still receive some sort of compensation even if you are found partially liable.
- Litigation takes time. If you decide to file suit, you will not immediately receive money. Litigation takes time to progress, as your attorneys and attorneys representing insurers in your claim monitor and conduct discovery regarding the accident, your injuries, and your medical treatment. During this time, our attorneys will be focusing on strengthening your position in litigation and more importantly, monitoring your medical treatment to ensure you can reach maximum medical recovery.
- Be honest with your attorney. Your attorney is your biggest advocate in your personal injury claim. You never want to break that trust, and eventually, the insurance companies will recover any prior medical injuries, settlements, or other issues which you did not disclose to your lawyer. Furthermore, all disclosures to your attorney will be protected by attorney-client privilege in prosecuting your personal injury claim. So, no matter what, always be honest with your attorney. If you were partially at fault in the accident let him or her know that. It is much better that something like that comes out ahead of time to where your attorney can plan to deal with it instead of being blindsided with it later.
Our personal injury attorneys would be happy to have a free consult with you to discuss your personal injury claim.
Please call Scott Vicknair, LLC at (504) 386-3753 if you have been in a car accident involving personal injuries and let us help you navigate the claims process.
