Following a truck accident, you should take several steps to protect your legal rights and ensure you receive the medical care you need. Some important steps include reporting the crash, remaining calm, and seeking emergency care.
It is understandable if you are unsure of what to do after an Atlanta truck accident. However, once you have seen a doctor and contacted local authorities to document the crash, we can help you understand your options for a personal injury case.
Remain Calm
An accident may be jarring, but keeping calm could help you protect your legal rights and ensure everyone involved in the crash obtains the medical care they need. Staying calm can also help the police in their investigation of the crash and ensure that you don’t make statements that could hurt your case, such as comments about what you believe to be your degree of fault.
There are a few ways you can stay calm following an accident. If it is safe to do so, remaining in your car for a moment could give you the space you need to assess your physical and mental state. Focusing on your breathing can also help you. Taking deep breaths can help reduce your stress, according to the Mayo Clinic.
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Report the Crash
You have an obligation to report any accident to the police if it involves serious property damage or bodily injuries. Contacting the police is important outside of any legal requirement to do so. When the police arrive on the scene, they will begin to investigate. Eventually, they will create a written report of the accident.
A police report is a powerful tool for you and your legal team. These reports:
- Contain contact information not only for the other driver but potentially for independent witnesses as well
- Spell out any traffic violations levied against the truck driver
- May contain useful diagrams or even give the officer’s opinion of what caused the crash
The police report can provide us with a useful place to begin the investigation.
Remain at the Scene
Calling the police and notifying them of the accident is not enough. You must also remain at the scene until the police arrive. If you choose to leave the scene of a truck accident before the police are there, you could face charges.
There is an important exception to this rule. If your injuries require emergency medical care, you are under no obligation to wait for the police. Your health and safety come first, and first responders will take you for immediate medical intervention if your injuries require it.
Seek Emergency Medical Care
Once you assess your physical condition and determine you have suffered an injury, it is critical that you seek treatment as soon as possible. This is the case no matter how severe you believe your injury to be because:
- It is not uncommon for the worst symptoms resulting from a truck accident to present themselves the following day. This means it is in your best interest to seek medical care even if you are not in overwhelming pain.
- Pursuing medical care immediately could lessen the severity of your injuries and get you on the road to recovery faster.
- Seeing the doctor could also protect your right to pursue a personal injury lawsuit. The records from your visits could corroborate your claims and demonstrate how severe your injuries are.
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Document the Accident Scene
You will only have one opportunity to document the scene of the accident, and we advise that you make a record of the scene yourself if possible. Of course, investigating the scene of the crash is only an option if your physical condition allows it.
Some of the ways to document the scene of your accident include:
- Taking photos of your vehicle
- Taking photos of the truck
- Obtaining contact information for any witnesses
- Obtaining insurance information from the other driver
- Looking for businesses with cameras that might have caught the accident
Avoid Discussions with the Truck Driver
While you are required to exchange insurance information with the other driver involved in a truck crash, it is best to avoid any additional conversation with them. This is true not only of the other driver but of their insurance company as well.
Discussing the facts of your case could put your claim in jeopardy. If you say something the other side could misconstrue as an admission of fault, it could make it difficult for you to collect financial compensation for your injuries. The good news is that we can contact the insurance companies on your behalf in the days that follow the crash.
Seek a Case Review to Protect Your Legal Rights
Once you have addressed your immediate needs at the scene of the truck accident, you should have an idea of what to do next. Thankfully, you do not have to pursue your personal injury claim alone. We can guide you not only on what to do at the scene of an Atlanta truck accident but also help prepare your claim moving forward.
You can call our office for a free case review. During your call, you can learn more about:
- Recoverable damages in your case, including recovery for medical bills, lost income, pain and suffering, and more
- The value of your case
- How we can help you take the next steps in your truck accident case
- How the statute of limitations may affect your timeline to file a lawsuit, per OCGA §9-3-33
Contact Your Insurance Company
If you have not done so already, you should inform your insurance company of the accident. Most insurance policies include language requiring insured drivers to notify the insurance company any time they are in an accident.
The failure to do so could have consequences. Your insurance company has the right to conduct its own investigation of the accident. By failing to notify them of the crash, they could miss out on their chance to do so. This could result in a denied claim or even the cancellation of your policy in some cases.
While you have to provide notice to your insurer, we recommend keeping your communication with the insurer brief. An attorney could speak with the insurance company on your behalf and help you protect your claim.
Never Discuss Your Claim
It is important that you avoid discussing the specifics of your injury claim with anyone outside of your legal team. While it is human nature to want to check on the other driver and discuss what happened, the less you say to them, the better.
Remember, anything you say to the other driver could be used against you during your case. It is not uncommon for an indication of sympathy for an injury to be taken as an admission of fault. For that reason, communication with the other driver should be limited to the exchange of insurance information.
The same is true for the truck driver’s insurance company or employer. Insurance companies frequently reach out to drivers—often within hours of the crash occurring. Their intention is to talk to the injured drivers before they have a chance to hire a truck accident lawyer. Insurance adjusters are trained to take your words out of context, making it risky to discuss your case with them.
Keep in Mind the Time Limit on Filing Lawsuits in Georgia
We recommend getting started on the process of your personal injury case as soon as you can, as you do not have unlimited time to file suit. In the event that your case needs to be brought to court, you have up to two years to begin the process, per OCGA §9-3-33.
We can help you keep your case on track as long as you contact us soon enough in the process.
Call Kaine Law if You’re in Pain
Let someone from Kaine Law review your case and advise you on your legal options. We will put our decades of experience to work for you.
Call for your free consultation right away.
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