A serious car accident is a major event that can have long-lasting effects on our health, finances and lives in general. The way in which the situation is handled in the early stages can also affect how things progress in the future, so it’s important to have an idea of how to work through different factors or elements of the incident in order to have the best possible outcome in all regards. Here are a few things you’ll need to do right after the accident, to make sure that things progress in your best possible interests.
Sort Out the Legal Stuff
This may be something you’ll want to ignore or avoid completely, but getting through the nitty-gritty admin side of an incident like this will be important for the long-term effects of what happened. Sorting out your claims early on will help you to get things neatly tied up and hopefully in your favour early on. This will entail talking to your insurance company and getting in contact with a good, specialised law firm like Larmoyeux & Bone, to help you through the process of claiming for damages, if you think that will be necessary.
Keep in mind that if you are going to be claiming either from insurance or opening a case, you will need to gather as much evidence from the incident as you possibly can, making this the very first thing you need to do after your accident. Taking photographs, writing down registration numbers, getting the personal details of other parties involved and talking to any witnesses you can find will help your case much quicker.
Get Medical Help
Getting yourself to a hospital as quickly as possible is crucial for many different reasons. First of all, and most importantly, you’ll want to check out that your physical health is up to scratch. Even in cases where you don’t feel any pain or notice any visible injuries, adrenaline and shock could be numbing pain and there may even be underlying or internal issues that you don’t notice. A thorough medical exam will help to identify and rule out any potential injuries.
Your prompt visit to a health professional will also be an important part of any claims you plan to make, particularly if you do have any injuries which you’ll want to claim. Documentation from your health professionals will be required from insurance companies and from your lawyers (to prove that you really are injured) and any evidence that you’re really suffering and may not be able to work and earn an income will help you to claim damages on any money you may forfeit earning in the future.
Recover Your Mind
Finally, don’t neglect your brain amidst all the things on your car accident to-do list. A serious collision can be traumatic and you may need to give yourself some time to mentally process and cope with everything – especially if you have suffered a serious injury. Be gentle with yourself and reach out for help from a psychologist if you feel like you need it.
