Legal•Info

4 Pieces of Information Every Car Accident Report Should Include

Posted: Friday, August 2nd, 2019 at 3:39 pm

4 Pieces of Information Every Car Accident Report Should Include

Car accidents can be upsetting — even traumatizing — events. It’s understandable to feel anxiety or fear after an accident, but it’s worth it to stay calm and be observant. Doing so can help you be a good source of information for both your personal injury attorney and the police officers at the scene. Photographs, witness statements, and other data could be different between winning a case or suffering the financial and other costs an accident can bring. Here are four pieces of information that every car accident report should include. It’s good to gather as much information as you can on these subjects.

The Accident Itself

What were you doing just before the accident happened? Where had you come from, and where were you going? Who was with you? What time was it? Was it cloudy or sunny? These might seem like mundane details, but they’re all contributory facts and can go a long way to paint the picture of what happened. Creating the narrative with as many sensory, environmental, and chronological details as you can is essential, so jot down everything you can see or remember. This will help your personal injury attorney craft the best possible case for you.

Injuries

Immediate pains and injuries should be written down. If there were passengers involved, make sure they write down their injuries and ailments, as well. However, don’t just take notes on the immediately obvious injuries; take notes for at least a week after the fact. The adrenaline that courses through your body after an accident or traumatic event can mask a lot of internal pain, and bruises don’t usually show up for a day or so. Track your symptoms and injuries, and make sure you take those notes to your doctor, too. The more specific your medical notes, the more accurate your diagnosis, and that diagnosis can be used as evidence to support your personal injury case in court.

Financial and Economic Losses and Expenses

Keep track of your losses and expenses immediately following the accident. For instance, if you couldn’t return to work because of injuries or the lack of a vehicle, figure out how much you lost in wages. What did you lose in property value? How much did you pay for repairs or medical care? What did it cost you to rent a car while your vehicle was worked on? Did you have to pay to replace your vehicle or property that was in the car, such as a laptop? All of these expenses need to be tracked because your personal injury attorney can use that information to help you obtain the most beneficial outcome in court.

Dialogue, Conversations, and Behavior

Conversations are evidence, too, and statements often make up a large part of a personal injury attorney’s case. Make note of who you talked to, what they said, and the information of as many people as you can obtain. Get witness statements and their contact information. Make note of any officers you spoke to, their names and badge numbers if you can get that information, and anything they said regarding the case. Don’t forget to document your discussions with other passengers and with the driver of the other vehicle, as well. Particularly, write down any strange or unusual behavior that the other driver exhibited. That kind of information can be used to establish things like drug or alcohol use of the other driver at the time of the accident.

Make sure to consult with an experienced personal injury attorney any time you’ve been involved in an accident. There’s no reason to go it alone or suffer the financial and physical losses associated with a car accident without obtaining the compensation you deserve. The legal system is complex and confusing, but personal injury lawyers have spent years learning the system so they can help drivers like you. The notes you take and the information you gather can help your attorney craft a factual and convincing case, which can help them obtain more compensation for you in the long run.

 

Bookmark This Article:
| del.icio.us: | Digg: | Technorati: | Newsvine: | Reddit: | Furl: | |
| Stumble Upon: | Yahoo!: | Google: |