A car crash is terrifying in itself. The aftermath doesn’t need to make it worse. The problem is that many people have no idea what they should do after they’ve been involved in an accident, which opens up new hazards that only worsen the current ones they’re coping with. Oftentimes, educating yourself after the crash is too late.
This applies to you and the people you rely on to make decisions for you if you’re in the hospital. Knowing the immediate and not-so-obvious risks that stand in your way of getting a full physical and financial recovery before any accident happens is your wisest course of action.
While accidents can differ in many ways, four key decisions apply to most cases.
Thinking Your Injuries Aren’t Serious
Many car accident victims believe that the severity of their injuries is measured by the amount of blood they see. They disregard the soreness and disorientation they feel as normal and disregard medical help to prioritize police reports and insurance claims. The problem with dismissing such simple pains is that you’re closing yourself off a proper diagnosis. In some cases, this leads to pain worsening in the next few hours or days, and by then, any internal injury has already become severe.
The soreness you feel could be a soft tissue sprain, disorientation could be a symptom of concussion, and any discomfort at all could be a sign that a muscle, bone, or organ has been affected. Delaying treatment prolongs your recovery period and stands in the way of you overseeing any financial compensation you deserve.
Worse, when you don’t get a diagnosis right away, any injury incurred due to the accident may not be attributed to it. Anything you do in the days between the accident and the diagnosis will be considered possible causes of the injury, and that is a huge setback to any legal action you want to take.
Holding Off Legal Actions
Speaking of delays, you have to keep the statute of limitations in mind when you’re dealing with a car crash. Refusing to get immediate medical care to document your injuries is just one of the many ways you’re jeopardizing yourself. Depending on where the accident happened in Los Angeles, the vehicle removal may be hastened to prevent traffic. The cleanup can remove crucial evidence, and witnesses might not recount the accident in detail.
Even the best car accident lawyer might think twice about taking you on if you’re already on the losing end of a case. If a lawyer does take you on, you’ll have a small window to prepare and demand compensation before the deadline.
It’s overwhelming, but it’s true. Any legal action you want to take must be done soon for it to be successful.
Trusting Your Insurance Company Too Much
Having an insurance company to back you up seems like the ultimate reprieve until you realize that they won’t always take your side. Any time you’ll make an accident claim, you’ll come across friendly insurance adjusters that will assess the situation to validate the claim you’re making.
You have to understand that their priority is to keep their company from shelling out too much cash, which means they want to find ways to pay you less. They’ll earn your trust and get you to talk as much as you can so that they can glean possibly questionable information. This is another reason it’s important to have legal counsel on your side as early as possible. A lawyer will stop you from giving recorded statements until you’ve had a thorough discussion and you’re in the right state of mind to give information.
Thinking Police Assistance Isn’t Necessary
People tend to feel that they’re making minor accidents worse by calling 911. Nobody was seriously hurt, and the other driver is sincerely apologetic about the crash. You don’t want to be the bad guy by hauling the cops into the situation, and everybody else involves thinks it’s a bad idea.
No matter what other people say, make that call. An accident is an accident, and a police report is vital. It’s a legal requirement to call first responders at once regardless of the severity of the crash in some states. Doing so allows you and the vehicles to be examined by professionals to benefit your health and any legal action you’ll take.
There’s a huge responsibility that comes with owning a car. It’s not all about learning maintenance and defensive driving skills. You’ll have to be equipped with the right knowledge on how to handle the worst-case scenarios.
