ExecutiveChronicles.com | 6 Steps for Suing After an Accident | A car accident can be a life-changing experience. Not only will you have likely sustained physical injuries from the crash, but the accident likely has a major effect on your state of mind too. You may be afraid to drive for a while, greatly limiting your transportation capabilities. All of these negative results add up, and if the accident was due to the negligence of someone else, then you’ll likely want reparations for the damages that were done. So how can you go about ensuring that you get the proper compensation? Here are six steps for suing after an accident.
Initial Accident
The first step for suing after an accident involves the initial crash itself. First, you should assess your own health, and if you need medical attention then you should get it immediately. If you’re unharmed or only have minor injuries, then you should then assess the damage to your vehicle. Take lots of pictures for future evidence, and make sure that you make note of the condition that the car is in. In addition, make sure that you get the other party’s name and insurance information, as well as notify the local authorities. Handling the first steps of a car accident correctly could save you some major headaches down the road.
Insurance
After the accident, you’ll want to alert your insurance right away. Even if you’re not the one who caused the accident, your auto insurance still needs to know what went on. Your insurance could make arrangements to help you get back on the road or could try to make your situation easier to handle. Although the other party’s insurance will get involved as well later on, initially it is important to let your insurance know everything that transpired and coordinate with them.
Contacting a Lawyer
Once you get the initial insurance claims out of the way, it’s time to start searching for a lawyer to help you with your legal efforts. Lawyers are always beneficial in any legal scenario, but when dealing with a situation like a car accident they become even more important. Lawyers can handle further negotiations with insurance companies, ensuring that you don’t get ripped off and that you are treated fairly. In addition, the best accident attorneys will provide you legal advice and expertise, guiding you through this tough process and providing you peace of mind. Finally, a lawyer will help you build your legal case and take it all the way to trial, proving to be a key part of the process.
Building a Case
Once you have your lawyer decided on and secured, it’s time to start building your legal case. It is here where all of the evidence that you collected immediately after the crash will come in handy, as it will serve to strengthen your case and prove your point. You should use any evidence available to you, including pictures, videos, insurance documents, and anything else that you can get your hands on. The stronger the case you build is, the more likely you are to win at trial or receive a favorable settlement offer.
Settlement
If you have a really strong case, chances are the defendant will likely want to settle out of court. Settling out of court could be good for you for a variety of reasons, as it will guarantee you compensation and allow you to avoid the traumatic experience of recalling the accident in a court of law. However, settling out of court isn’t completely perfect, as the settlement amount will likely be less than what you would get from winning a trial.
Trial
For this step to occur, you would either have to decline settling outside of court or never have the option provided to you in the first place. Obviously, as the last step of the legal process, the trial is extremely important, as it is here where it’ll be decided if you receive your compensation or not. Going to trial over settling does have its advantages, as it will potentially allow you to receive a much more favorable ruling than what a settlement could provide. That being said, there’s no guarantee that you’ll win the case, and if things go south then you could walk home with nothing. However, if you build a strong case and provide enough evidence for the court then you should have a great chance at winning your case.
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