What do you do after you’ve been in a car accident?

Do you know what to do if you’re involved in a car accident?  Who do you call?  What do you say?  What do you need?  The information that follows should help answer these questions.

Things you should keep in your vehicle at all times:

1.     Your vehicle’s insurance card or other insurance policy information – make sure it is up-to-date – if your information is not up-to-date, the police may issue you a ticket

2.     Blank paper and pen to take down information

3.     Consider keeping a disposable camera in your glove compartment – take photographs of the scene and the vehicles involved

Immediately after an accident, contact the police.  Stay at the scene until after the police have indicated it is okay for you to leave – unless, of course, you are taken by ambulance from the scene.  Verify that the responding officer will be preparing an accident report – MV-104A.

Gather the name and address of the other drivers involved.  Take down their driver’s license information, as well as their insurance policy information.

Gather witness information.  Did anyone stop to say they saw the accident happen?  If so, ask for the person’s name and contact information.  This information may be vital later on.

Report the accident to your insurance company.  Do not wait to do this.  Contact them as soon as possible, preferably the same day the accident took place.  If the police provided you with a Central Complaint Number (or other identifying number), give this number to your insurance company.  Make sure you take down the names of every insurance company representative you speak to with regard to your accident.  You will likely be given a claim number by the insurance company representative – write this number down.

If you are injured as a result of the accident, advise your insurance company that you are injured.  As discussed in the first blog entry, under certain instances you will notify an insurance company other than your own when you are injured in an accident.  In other words, if you are a passenger in your friend’s car when you get into an accident, you tell your friend’s insurance company that you are hurt.  If you are a pedestrian hit by a van, you tell the van’s insurance company that you are hurt.  If you are driving your own car, or if you’re a passenger in a car you own, you tell your insurance company that you are hurt.

The insurance company will send you a No-Fault application to be completed. You must return the application within 30 days of the accident in order to receive no-fault benefits.  It is recommended that you have an attorney assist you in the completion of this application.  Why?  Because from this point forward, every document that you complete and/or sign is a statement that may be used against you or used to contradict later statements.

What if you are “on the job” when you get into an accident?  If you are involved in an accident during the course of your employment, your Workers’ Compensation Carrier will cover your injuries.  It is imperative that you notify your employer that you were injured in an accident while on the job.

Contact Rosenberg & Gluck

If you have suffered a personal injury because of a car accident, or the carelessness or negligence of another person, contact the experienced personal injury attorneys at Rosenberg & Gluck. We are among the largest and most experienced Personal Injury Firms in Suffolk County and Nassau County. Personal injury is all we do. For a free initial consultation, e-mail us or call the office at 631-451-7900.