Every year there are on average 6 million car accidents in the United States. This means statistically speaking, everyone will have been in at least one accident throughout their driving life.
But do you know what to do if you’re involved in a car accident?
Here are some common car accident mistakes that are made and how to avoid them.
Not Staying At The Scene Of The Car Accident
If a car accident isn’t major enough to warrant autobody repairs for your vehicle, you should still remain at the scene until the police are notified of the accident.
The reason being that if the other person decides to pursue a claim for bodily injury if they end up having whiplash, for example, you may be charged with a hit and run.
During any type of car accident, you should exchange info and either call the police to notify them or drive to the nearest collision center to report it. This leads us to number two of what to do after a car accident.
Not Exchanging Information
It’s absolutely vital that you collect the other driver’s information following an accident. This is probably one of the biggest car accident mistakes.
If you do not exchange information, you will have extreme difficulties putting in a claim. On top of that, you have no one to sue if you need to collect compensation from an injury.
Always ask for the other driver’s license, vehicle ownership, and registration before leaving the accident scene.
Not Taking Pictures & Collecting Accident Details
Another common car accident mistake is not taking photos of the accident and not collecting all the details of the event.
You will want to make sure to take photos of your vehicle, and the other person’s vehicle in the accident so that when it comes to a claim or a lawsuit you have photographic proof. The old saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words and this couldn’t be more true when it comes to a court case and for repairs covered by your insurance.
Additionally, you will want to take all the details of what happened in the accident while it’s fresh. Make sure that the police report that you submit is accurate down to the street and time that it occurred. You may also want to collect info from witnesses of the car accident.
Not Contacting a Lawyer For Advice
The final common mistake when it comes to car accidents is not contacting a lawyer after the accident for advice.
This is crucial especially when it comes to bigger accidents with extensive repairs and/or injuries to either yourself or the other driver. A lawsuit in these instances is pretty inevitable, and now asking legal advice is a bit mistake that can cost you thousands if not millions of dollars.
Car Accident Know-How
Make sure that you don’t fall into the common car accident mistakes when you end up with your own ‘oopsie’ moment. It could cost you the ability to sue, and collect compensations for your vehicle repairs from insurance.
If you’ve followed all these rules and are ready to get your vehicle road-ready again contact us to book your repairs estimate today.