What to Do After a Car Accident
After a Car Accident: What to Do and What Not to Do
Hammett Bellin & Oswald LLC · Neenah, Wisconsin
920-720-0000 · E-mail
The personal injury attorneys at Hammett Bellin & Oswald have developed a short list of actions to take — and not to take — after a car accident. Following these simple steps will help you preserve your right to collect the full amount of financial compensation you may be entitled to.
Print out a credit card-sized version of this page to keep in your wallet or glove box.
1. Do not decline medical treatment, and follow up if pain develops days or weeks later
The most important thing to do immediately after a car accident is to check your own health status and the safety and condition of passengers in your car. If you are uninjured and it is safe to do so, check the safety of passengers in other vehicles involved in the accident. If you think you have been injured, tell the responding police officer.
Do not minimize your injuries, and monitor your health in the days and weeks after the car accident. If you wait to seek medical treatment, the insurance company may argue that your injuries must be minor. Also, some common — and potentially serious — post-car accident injuries develop progressively. Symptoms of medical conditions like traumatic brain injury or spinal cord damage may not develop until days or even weeks after the accident.
2. Call the police and get a police report
Regardless of the accident's severity, call the police and wait until the police arrive and complete an accident report. The police report may be critically important when you make your insurance claim. Witness and driver interviews conducted by the police tend to have more credibility than interviews conducted by the people involved in the accident.
3. If the other driver does not have car insurance, report the accident to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation
Under Wisconsin insurance law, you cannot get compensation via your own uninsured motorist coverage or Med Pay unless or until you have tried to get payment from the uninsured driver. Report the accident to the Department of Transportation, which will instruct the uninsured driver to pay you or a bond, or face driver's license suspension and other potential penalties.
If you are an uninsured driver, do not ignore any notices you receive from the Department of Transportation. Contact our law office to find out how we may be able to help.
4. Contact your own insurance company
Report the car accident to your own car insurance company. Your insurance company will help you arrange for car repairs and car rental and will begin negotiating with the other driver's insurance company.
5. Consult an attorney
Especially after a serious car accident resulting in major injuries, consult a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after the accident. The initial consultation is free of charge, and our law firm handles accident cases on a contingency fee basis. An experienced car accident attorney can help make sure you get full compensation from the correct sources — your car insurance, your health insurance, and so forth. Your lawyer will develop a complete financial picture of the cost of your injuries, including lost wages due to time off work and necessary future medical care as well as existing medical expenses.
6. Do not discuss the accident with any insurance company besides your own
The other driver's insurance company will try to get recorded statements from you that could seriously hurt your case. You might even be contacted while you are still in the hospital. Decline politely to discuss the accident and refer the insurance company to your lawyer, if you have one.
Contact Hammett Bellin & Oswald LLC: No attorneys' fees unless you win
Call 920-720-0000 to make a private and complimentary appointment with one of our car accident lawyers. We do not charge attorneys' fees unless we win your case.
We serve clients throughout the Fox River Valley and Northeastern Wisconsin.
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