What Steps Should You Take if You’re Injured in a Car Accident?
Georgia is an at-fault state for automobile insurance, which means negligent drivers must pay for the damages they cause. If you’re injured in a Georgia car accident because another driver was negligent, seek legal help at once from a Georgia personal injury lawyer.
If you are injured in this state because someone else was negligent, you are entitled by law to recover compensation for your current and projected future medical expenses, lost wages and projected future lost wages, personal pain, suffering, and related damages and losses.
However, that compensation isn’t automatic. In most cases, you’ll have to file an injury claim that proves the other driver’s negligence was the direct cause of your personal injury, and you’ll need the advice and services of a Forsyth County car accident attorney.
What Mistakes Must Be Avoided if You File a Personal Injury Claim?
If you’re injured by a negligent driver in a Georgia traffic accident, you can’t make any mistakes when you’re seeking to recover compensation. Nevertheless, the following mistakes are made far too frequently by the injured victims of negligence:
- failing to gather important evidence at the accident scene
- failing to seek prompt and comprehensive medical treatment
- making a statement to the other motorist’s car insurance company
- exaggerating or misrepresenting how the accident occurred or the extent of your injury
- failing to retain – immediately – the services and advice of a personal injury attorney
Mistake #1: Failing to Gather Important Evidence at the Accident Scene
A lawyer can advise you later, but no lawyer will be present at an accident scene. You must put yourself in the best position to succeed with a personal injury claim, and that means gathering evidence that will confirm your claim. Failing to gather that evidence is a common mistake.
If anyone is injured, the immediate priority after any crash is calling 911 for medical and police assistance. When the police arrive, ask them how to obtain a copy of the accident report and when it will become available. You will need that report if you bring an injury claim.
Take photographs of the vehicles’ damages, the accident location, license plates, and your own injuries. If there were eyewitnesses, try to get their names and contact information. Photos and eyewitness statements that confirm your claim are often persuasive in personal injury cases.
Make copies of the photographs and documents, and store them securely. Too many injured victims of negligence go to their first meeting with a personal injury lawyer without medical records, photographs, or anything that proves they have been injured. Do not make this mistake.
Mistake #2: Failing to Seek Prompt and Comprehensive Medical Treatment
If you’re not taken to an emergency room or treated at the scene after a car accident, you must obtain a medical exam immediately. Your injuries may seem trivial, and you may feel healthy, but latent or difficult-to-detect injuries can quickly develop into serious medical conditions.
You should be examined by a medical professional, if it’s at all possible, within twenty-four hours of a car accident. Without an immediate medical examination, you might not be able to prove you were injured in that particular accident.
Medical documentation plays a key role in many personal injury cases. Failing to seek medical help quickly or failing to keep follow-up appointments casts doubt on your injury claim. Seeking quick medical attention, keeping appointments, and following doctor’s orders means you are:
- making your health a priority,
- establishing the medical documentation you’ll need for a personal injury claim,
- and avoiding a mistake that too many injured victims of negligence have made.
Mistake #3: Making a Statement to the Other Motorist’s Car Insurance Company
Because Georgia is an at-fault automobile insurance state, an at-fault driver’s auto insurance company is usually responsible for compensating an injury victim for that victim’s medical expenses, lost wages, and related damages.
If you’re injured in a Georgia traffic accident because another driver was negligent, don’t make any statement to that driver’s insurance company, or your own as anything you say to them could be used against you. To avoid that mistake, be sure to consult with a Georgia attorney you can trust first.
At Meeks Impact Law, you can rest assured we will utilize our years of expertise in taking on insurance companies to your advantage in recovering the maximum compensation you deserve.
Mistake #4: Exaggerating or Misrepresenting How the Accident Occurred or the Extent of Your Injury
Unfortunately for anyone who is genuinely injured, fraudulent injury claims aren’t unusual. Research studies indicate that fifteen percent of all personal injury claims may be fraudulent. You must be truthful, precise, and accurate.
Misrepresenting any of the facts is a serious mistake, and it can have legal consequences. If you file a personal injury claim, your credibility will be scrutinized. Any exaggeration or misrepresentation could jeopardize your claim.
Mistake #5: Failing to Retain – Immediately – the Services and Advice of a Car Accident Lawyer
Although there are several narrow exceptions, the deadline for filing personal injury claims based on auto accidents – in most cases – is two years in the State of Georgia, but you cannot wait two years to speak with an attorney. Don’t even wait two weeks.
Instead, discuss your right to compensation with an attorney immediately after a medical provider examines and treats you for your injury. Over time, evidence deteriorates or disappears, and witnesses forget details.
While the memories and evidence are fresh, take your case to an Forsyth County car accident attorney – attorney Zach Meeks at Meeks Impact Law.
Why Should You Choose Meeks Impact Law to Represent You?
The personal injury team at Meeks Impact Law represents and advises injured automobile accident victims in Forsyth County, the Metro Atlanta area, and across the State of Georgia. We know what it takes to prevail with your injury claim and win the compensation you need.
Meeks Impact Law is the legal practice of Zach Meeks, a personal injury lawyer who also has considerable experience in the insurance industry. Alongside his dedicated team, attorney Zach Meeks gives his time and personal attention to every client and every case.
Our fee is contingent upon our firm obtaining an acceptable monetary offer for you, meaning our interests are aligned in ensuring your victory. To begin the personal injury process now or to learn more about your rights as a victim of negligence, call Meeks Impact Law at 678-341-5212 or start a free case evaluation with no obligation.
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