How to Collect Evidence After a Car Accident

Car accidents are a leading cause of death and injury in a city like Atlanta. In 2019, more than 39,000 car crashes occurred in that city alone. These crashes resulted in thousands of injuries and fatalities.

Unfortunately, injured accident victims are up against many obstacles when trying to get the compensation they need to rebuild their lives. To make things easier, accident victims are encouraged to collect as much evidence as possible after a crash. While this is not always easy, this evidence is crucial in building a solid case and negotiating maximum compensation with insurance companies.

Collecting Evidence after a Motor Vehicle Crash

After a car accident, collecting evidence is important. This evidence will help you build your case and ensure adequate compensation for damages. Physical evidence can help establish who was at fault for the accident and support your damages claim.

First Things First: Protect Yourself and Your Future

The first thing you should do after an accident is call 911 and receive medical care. This is critical because it allows you to get the help you need after an accident. Prompt medical care is one of the best ways to reduce the pain and suffering you may experience after an accident.

In addition, your medical report will become an invaluable piece of evidence. Attorneys can use your medical report to build your claim and ensure that you have enough money to pay for medical expenses and future care.

Don’t Wait to Call an Attorney

If you or a loved one has been involved in a car accident, it is important to seek legal help as soon as possible. While you are recovering, your attorney can take the reins and begin collecting evidence. This is the best way to gather evidence because it allows you to focus on your health and recovery rather than finding evidence for your personal injury claim.

Did you know that a lot of evidence is lost quickly after an accident? While you’re in the hospital dealing with surgeries and therapies, valuable evidence is often lost. Skid marks fade, vehicle damage gets fixed, and commercial truck black box data gets erased. This isn’t fair! Yet, injured accident victims often go home from the hospital to find that gathering evidence for their claim just got harder. Make things easier on yourself by calling a lawyer from the start.

Gather Evidence Yourself

If you did not suffer a serious injury after an accident, you can take steps to begin gathering evidence right from the accident scene. Here are some tips on how to collect evidence after a car accident:

1. Call the police. The police report from the accident is very helpful. The report will include information about what the officer saw and will often determine who was at fault for the accident. Even minor crash victims will benefit from getting an accident report.
2. Take pictures of the accident scene. This includes photos of vehicle damage and photos of the accident scene. If there are skid marks on the road, take photos of them. Photograph the license plates of all the vehicles involved.
3. Get witness contact information. Witnesses can help provide information about what happened. Get eyewitness contact information and a statement from them about what they saw.
4. Keep track of accident expenses. You may not realize it, but accident expenses can become valuable evidence. They can help your attorney show how much you’ve paid for medical care, medications, and car repairs. Keep receipts and copies of all bills.

If you follow these tips, you will be in a much better position to receive the compensation you deserve after an Atlanta car accident. Don't let the insurance companies take advantage of you; make sure you have strong evidence on your side.

Contact a Car Accident Lawyer

When you suffer an injury in a car accident, you need a law firm on your side that can help you fight the insurance companies. An experienced car accident lawyer means you get an expert who knows how to obtain maximum compensation for you after a crash, and you don’t pay anything unless you win.