Do’s and Don’ts After a Car Accident in Greenville, South Carolina

If you’ve been in a car accident in Greenville, South Carolina, the Hayes Law Firm Upstate Attorneys, LLC can help you navigate the claims process and help you best understand your next steps. You may have many questions about your rights, what your claim might be worth, and questions about your personal injury case if you’ve been in a recent car accident. The Hayes Law Firm Upstate Attorneys, LLC can help you navigate the do’s and don’ts of your claims process. The do’s and don’ts below are meant to be a general guide and shouldn’t replace the counsel of a qualified car accident attorney in Greenville, South Carolina.

Here’s what you should do:

Do call the police and file a police report at the scene of the accident. You’ll need a police report when making an insurance claim. Your police report is also an important piece of evidence that the Hayes Law Firm Upstate Attorneys, LLC in Greenville, South Carolina will review to determine fault. Our firm may also need your police report when seeking damages from negligent parties and insurers.
Do seek medical care as soon as possible, whether or not you think you suffered a serious injury. Some types of injuries can take some time before they become apparent. For example, the symptoms of traumatic brain injury can take days or weeks before they appear.
Do get the contact information of other drivers involved. Get the names, addresses, phone numbers, make, model, year, license plate, and insurance information of the other driver involved in the accident.
Do get the names and contact information of witnesses who saw your accident.
Do report your accident to your insurance company.
Do take photos of the accident scene.
Do contact the car accident lawyers at the Hayes Law Firm Upstate Attorneys, LLC in Greenville, South Carolina to assist you with making a claim. You may be entitled to seek damages for your medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering. Our firm can assist you with speaking to insurance adjusters and can fight to help you get the claim you may deserve under the law. We can also fight to help you seek damages from negligent parties if your insurance claim doesn’t cover all your medical costs, lost wages, and pain and suffering losses.
Do ask insurance adjusters to contact you in writing about your claim. While it is important to report your accident to insurance adjusters as soon as possible after a crash, you are not required to speak to insurance adjusters over the phone or required to make statements over the phone. Submit police reports and other evidence such as repair estimates in writing and ask that your adjuster ask you any additional questions in writing. Anything you say to an insurance adjuster can impact your case. The Hayes Law Firm Upstate Attorneys, LLC are car accident lawyers who can read over all correspondence from insurance adjusters and fight to help you get the best possible settlement permitted under the law.

Don’t:

Don’t move your vehicle after the accident unless you have been instructed to do so by police or emergency personnel. If your vehicle creates an unsafe situation, you may need to move it. However, police might be able to document the position of your vehicle which can help officers evaluate what happened during the accident. The position of your vehicle can reveal information about negligence to police who are trained to investigate crash scenes.
Don’t put yourself at risk. Take steps to help others who have been hurt and do what you can to prevent further injury, but your safety should be your top priority. Don’t stay in your car if it could be a fire hazard.
Don’t leave the scene of the crash. Leaving the scene of an accident without calling the police or seeking assistance is a felony. Don’t leave the crash scene until police have arrived, filed a report, and told you it is safe to leave.
Don’t talk about blame after an accident. Emotions might be running high after a crash. Sometimes you might blame yourself or maybe the other driver is to blame and you are angry. Try to stay calm. Don’t assign blame. Call the police and let officers sort that out. Officers are trained to gather a range of evidence to build a case for who may have been at fault for the crash. For example, police have the authority to ask a driver who appears to be intoxicated to submit to breath or blood tests.
Don’t agree to a settlement without speaking to your car accident lawyer. The Hayes Law Firm Upstate Attorneys, LLC are car accident lawyers in Greenville, South Carolina who can review your case, estimate the value of your claim, and fight to get you the best possible settlement under the law. Don’t agree to a settlement without first taking the time to understand what your case might be worth.
Don’t post about your accident on social media. Anything you say or do online can potentially be used against you in your case. It also might be in your best interests to avoid posting online in general because any activity you show yourself doing could be used to limit your pain and suffering damages should your lawyer deem it appropriate to seek these kinds of damages.

These are just some of the things you should and shouldn’t do after a car accident. The best way to protect your rights is to contact a car accident attorney as soon as possible after your crash. If you and your family are struggling to pay the bills, are facing high medical bills, and if your life has been seriously altered due to a car crash, you may have rights under the law. However, you may only have a limited time to seek damages for your injuries. Contact the Hayes Law Firm Upstate Attorneys, LLC, car accident lawyers in Greenville, South Carolina today.