After a hit-and-run accident, it can be hard to understand what the next steps are. With various medical bills, insurance claims, attorneys, and compensation claims, the process can be very long and daunting. After an accident, it is important to reach out to an experienced personal injury attorney to take your case and provide you with all the necessary information for a case. An experienced attorney will be able to take some stress off of your shoulders and walk you through the process of dealing with being involved in a hit-and-run case.
Steps to Take After an Accident
The following are steps you should take after being involved in an accident.
- Pullover. Try to move off of the road and out of the way of more danger if you are able to.
- Call the police. It is important to file an official report, this will be used in your case. Tell the police everything that occurred.
- Check to see if anyone else is injured. Ask or call for an ambulance if you or someone else appears injured.
- Exchange information. It is very important to get the information of anyone involved and/or any witnesses. Information helpful would include full names, addresses, home, work, and cell phone numbers.
- Take notes and pictures. Taking notes and pictures can help you remember clearly when asked to describe what happened, over time you will begin to forget exactly what happened. Pictures can also be useful to show the damage and give an idea to insurance and attorneys on what damage occurred.
- Report the accident to your insurance companies. Once leaving the scene, the accident needs to be reported to your insurance company and an uninsured motorist claim must be made with your insurance company.
- Keep a list of expenses. Keeping a list of any and all expenses after the accident can be helpful to a case and your compensation. Expenses such as rental cars, medical bills, prescriptions, lost wages, etc.
- Reach out to an attorney. The decision to hire a personal injury attorney is very wise as they have a lot of experience in this area and are able to deal with the complex parts of your case, such as dealing with insurance companies.
Investigating the Hit and Run Accident
Upon being involved in a hit-and-run case, it will not always be easy to track down the individual who is responsible for paying your damages and losses. In order to do so, investigative work must be done to find this individual. If there is video or camera evidence with a license plate number, police will need to figure out who the owner of the car is. If the owner cannot be found based on a license plate, the car company that sold the vehicle will need to be contacted to get more information. As a car accident lawyer, sometimes if no information can be found on the car, a private investigator will need to be hired. In some cases, an individual may never be found but because you must have uninsured motorist coverage, you at least have the option of turning to your own insurer to get losses and damages paid.
Hiring An Attorney
If you or anyone you know has been injured in a hit-and-run accident, it is very important to reach out to a personal injury attorney to help assist with your case. A knowledgeable attorney will be able to guide you through the process and assist you with building a strong defense case. Don’t let the insurance companies take advantage of you.