Insurance

Hopefully you will never be concerned in an automobile accident or need to file an insurance claim. Even the most careful and skilled drivers, however, can easily find themselves in the middle of a crash. Would you know what to do? Knowledge of what to do after the automobile accident can help in making the insurance claims process easier and smoother so you are back on the road faster.
If you are in an auto accident:

1.    Try to stay calm, stop your car and check for wounds. The life and health of you, your passengers and the other people involved in the accident is far more critical than the car itself.

2. If required, call the police and tell them of the accident, your location, how many people are concerned, whether there are injuries and the kinds of wounds.

3. You may wish to take reasonable steps to protect yourself, and your vehicle, from further damage. Wherever possible and if legal, move the cars to the side of the road and turn on your perils as fast as it is safe. If you have flares, you may need to use them to alert oncoming traffic and to stop extra crashes.

4.    Taking lots of notes is a good practice, like:

•    the date, time and location of the accident
•    how the accident occurred – occasionally a drawing is worth a thousand words and can help augment what you’ve noted
•    the type and location of damage to your automobile
the type and location of damage to the other cars or property concerned
the names, addresses and contact information of all drivers and passengers involved in the accident
driver’s license numbers and all the information on the licenses
insurance identifications including the name of the insurer and policy number
the names, addresses and contact information of witnesses
•    the names and badge numbers of police officers or other first reply personnel

(Being able to take notes is critical so keep a pen and pad in your glove compartment, just in case.)

5.    You may wish to ask the police officer when and where you can get a copy of the accident report. There’s a good chance you’ll need it when you submit your insurance claim to your insurer.

6.    It’s usually a good idea to call your insurance company right away and report the accident because the sooner they know about the crash the quicker they can start working to resolve your insurance claim. As well, they’ll be able to explain the next steps, like where to have the car towed if necessary and arrange for an adjuster to come out and appraise the damage before any repair work is done.

7.    There are a couple of don’ts you might want to consider like don’t discuss the financial limits of your auto insurance policy and avoid discussing the responsibility for the accident or circumstances of the accident with anyone other than the police or a representative of your insurance company.

Auto accidents take a significant toll on everyone involved. But, if you stay calm, make safety your priority and follow the above tips, you will get through the ordeal of being in an accident and submitting an insurance claim.

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Whenever someone is injured in a car accident in Georgia that was caused by another person, that persons insurance company will immediately begin working behind the scenes to prepare to defend their client.

And what I see happen many times is the person that was injured makes a terrible mistake and attempts to handle their motor vehicle crash in Georgia on their own.  And as part of that process the insurance adjuster will politely ask or even require that the injured person sign a medical release so the adjuster can obtain their personal medical records.

The larger problem with this, and what is not usually discussed is the legal language of the medical release itself.

It often gives the adjuster the right to look into your medical background and does not restrict them to investigating the car crash only. The adjuster will use this information to seek out other injuries you may have had to the body parts you claim for your accident. Why do they do this?

Well, the obvious reason is it gives them an opportunity to claim that your injury was a pre-existing condition or your condition is the result of an incident that occurred prior to the car crash and was not the direct consequence of the auto collision. They will in turn adjust their reserves or lower the value of the claim which means you get less money overall.

My recommendation is this – it is important that you not sign or give anything to the insurance companies until you have spoken with legal counsel to find out if it is in your best interest to sign whatever document they are requesting. And a word of warning for those that have been injured in a car accident. Some adjusters have gone so far as to tell the injured person they will not be able to work on your claim unless you sign the documents they request.

This may or may not be true but if that happens to you, you should contact an attorney immediately to find out your legal rights. An attorney can help you and discover exactly what the insurance company is up to regarding your claim so that your rights are protected and not exploited.

If you are a loved one has been in an auto accident and you need help, do not hesitate to contact me at 770-948-5454 and see if this Atlanta Auto Accident Attorney can be of assistance to you and/or your loved one.

Ty Wilson is a personal injury and car accident attorney in Atlanta that assists those that have been injured in automobile accidents in the Atlanta Metro area.