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Auto Accident Attorney

How Does The Auto Accident Claims Process Work?

Get a Personal Injury Lawyer Who Can Fight For Your Rights!

Auto accidents are not pleasant to experience, but it’s important to know what to do and how to proceed if you get into one. We, at Legal Chiefs, can help you get in touch with a local auto accident lawyer. However, we’ve also highlighted some of the key information to help you get confident about the claims process.

What to Do After an Auto Accident?

If possible, the first thing you need to do is to move your vehicle out of traffic and make sure you don’t leave the scene. Turn off the engine and call 911 if anyone needs medical assistance, but even if no one is hurt, you should notify the police to report the accident.

As soon as everything from above is done, you should start gathering information about the accident. When the time comes to file a claim, work with insurance companies, or give your auto accident lawyer more details to be used as evidence. Here’s what you should keep in mind:

 

Never accept or place blame on the other driver. This is yet to be determined with your insurance company and lawyer.

Take photos of the scene. Those should include license plates, other driver/drivers involved, any damage done to all the vehicles involved, the direction in which each vehicle was traveling, and the nearby traffic signs.

Exchange information with the other driver/drivers, including your name and insurance company.
These are the most important things to do, but you can also try and capture as many details as possible. You can start taking notes on your phone, gathering the following information:

The exact location of the accident

The speed at which you were driving

The exact time of the accident

Weather conditions

Time the police arrived, as well as their name and badge number

Road conditions

Witnesses names and contact information

The Basics of an Auto Accident Claim

Just like most of the legal processes, the exact steps that your claim will take will differ depending on the following factors:

The exact nature of the accident

How severe the accident was

The degree of property and bodily damage that occurred, if any
Regardless of the specific circumstances, there are a few actions that will certainly follow.

1. The Claims Adjuster

A claim adjuster will be assigned to your case as soon as you or your auto accident lawyer files your claim. The adjuster is responsible for reviewing your auto policy and determining exactly how you’re covered and how you should proceed. The adjuster will need a copy of the detailed police report, communicate with other parties involved, go to the scene of the accident, examine your car for damage, and review your medical record. This is why gathering that information beforehand is important and will help the process.

2. Finding Fault

Not all accidents are cut-and-dry, and sometimes, one driver is mainly at fault, but not entirely. Determining a percentage of blame is the way for insurance companies to decide who pays what amount. For example, if you were found to be 60% at fault and the other driver was found to be 40% at fault, the settlement payments would be decided against those ratios as well.

3. Payment for Damages and Loses

When the fault ratios have been determined, your adjuster will work with the other party’s insurance company to seek payment for any medical attention you may require or auto repair expenses that need to be covered. If your adjuster determines that the other party’s at fault, they can sue that party for the amount of its payment in a process known as subrogation.

The Basics of an Auto Accident Claim

If the outcome of your accident claim wasn’t satisfying for you, you have a few options but if you want to avoid a full-blown trial, you can seek arbitration instead. Whatever it is, hiring an experienced auto accident lawyer is a key asset throughout this journey, and this is where we, at Legal Chiefs, come in.

Learn More About Auto Accident

Frequently Asked Questions

The foremost thing to do is to seek medical aid nearby. This is the first priority. Collecting evidence or taking photographs are the secondary priorities that can be managed later. In many cases, an observer helps you get these things done for you. So, you don’t need to worry about that, first find medical help, then collect evidence.

Different states have different laws and timelines. You can get up to one year or even four years of the timeline to file your case against the third party for some states. However, the best time frame is within 1 year of the accident. Once you fill the form, you can get the exact information from your lawyer.

There are basically two types of main compensations, which include economic and non-economic. In the economic damages, you get compensation for physical damage, medical bills compensation, property loss, and so on. On the other hand, the non-economic compensations are on the emotional side like pressure, sorrow, inconvenience, mental suffering, and more.

 

LegalChiefs.com provides useful information about multiple law types and works with a vast network of attorneys. To speak with an auto wreck and injury lawyer, simply fill out the form or call the number at the top of this page.