5 Steps You Can Take from the Accident Scene | Free Case Review

5 Steps You Can Take from the Accident Scene

1. Evaluate Your Injuries This is something you’ll probably do subconsciously in the span of a few seconds. After the accident, do a quick inventory of your body for pain, visible injuries, and any limitations on your mobility, and do the same for everyone else in your vehicle. If you’re unable to move, try to […]

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April 21, 2017

1. Evaluate Your Injuries

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This is something you’ll probably do subconsciously in the span of a few seconds. After the accident, do a quick inventory of your body for pain, visible injuries, and any limitations on your mobility, and do the same for everyone else in your vehicle. If you’re unable to move, try to call for help. Sometimes, even if you can move, it’s best to stay put. For example, if you’ve hit your head, your head injury may be more severe than you can currently feel or see. Stay put until help arrives.

If you’re uninjured or if your injuries are truly minor, you can take the next steps.

2. Call the Police

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If you’re seriously injured and unable to move, trust that someone has called the police and that help is on the way. But if you’re able to call the police without risking further injury to yourself, do it. If anyone on the scene is injured, it’s important that help arrive as quickly as possible. Don’t delay—calling the police should be your first move.

3. Move Off of the Road

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This next step will depend on the severity of your injuries and the damage to your vehicle. If the accident is fairly minor, getting of the road may be as easy as turning on your hazard lights and slowly pulling to the shoulder. But if your car is severely damaged, you may not be able to drive it. If you’re uninjured, try pushing your car to the side of the road. Hopefully, Good Samaritans will stop and help while you wait for the police to arrive.

It’s important to move your car to the side of the road to avoid getting into another accident with a vehicle that doesn’t see your stopped car. This is especially important if you get into an accident in the middle of an intersection. However, if you are too injured or your car is too damaged to move, it’s okay to stay put. Ask someone who is uninjured to help direct traffic around the accident until the police arrive.

4. Accept Medical Treatment

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If you’ve been seriously injured, accept treatment from the paramedics who arrive on the scene. Let them take you to the emergency room for further treatment if necessary. Even if you don’t feel severely injured, if a paramedic tells you that you need medical treatment immediately, believe them and let them do their job. You may have internal injuries, such as head trauma, that you do not yet fully feel or see.

If your injuries are minor, it’s still a good idea to see a doctor fairly soon after the accident. Try to see a medical professional within 24 hours of the accident if you’ve been injured in any way.

5. Exchange Information with the Other Driver

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Finally, before you leave the scene, make sure you get the other driver’s information. If you are too injured, don’t worry—the police should be able to collect the necessary information for their police report. It’s important to have the other person’s information because, if they are found to be at fault for the accident, their insurance company should cover your injuries and damages.

hiring-an-Indiana-attorneyWhen You Should Contact an Indiana Car Accident Attorney

You shouldn’t call an attorney’s office from the scene of your Indiana car accident. What’s most important at the scene is making sure you’re safe and receiving medical treatment if you’re injured. Instead, call an Indiana car accident attorney after you’ve been seen by a doctor. That way, we’ll know exactly what your injuries are and we can start dealing with the insurance company on your behalf.

If you’ve been injured in a car accident, call Hensley Legal Group today for a free case review, or contact us online. Our Indiana car accident attorneys are here to help.