Accidents are terrifying and traumatic. The aftermath of a truck accident is particularly chaotic and frightening, especially if you’ve experienced painful injuries or have injured loved ones with you. It’s difficult to keep a cool head during the trauma immediately following an accident involving a large commercial truck, but what you do during the minutes after a devastating truck accident can help protect your physical and financial recovery later. Knowing the steps to take after an accident not only ensures that help arrives at the scene, but also streamlines the process of collecting evidence of liability after the accident so you can recover compensation for damages like medical expenses, lost wages, disability, and pain and suffering.
Truck accidents cause severe and even grave injuries with life-altering consequences. If you’ve been severely injured, you should do little other than wait in place for help to arrive. If you’re able to use your phone—or hand it to an uninjured person to use for you—it becomes an important tool for the following steps:
Once at the hospital, be sure to have a complete evaluation and tell the providers about all of your symptoms, even if they seem minor. Trauma can mask symptoms of serious injuries. Ask for a detailed medical report with your doctor’s treatment recommendations for your injury and your prognosis.
After the accident, the insurance provider of the trucking company or driver is likely to reach out to you with a quick settlement offer. These rarely work in your favor. Often they make a lowball settlement offer before you even know the full extent of your economic damages, like medical expenses and lost income. Don’t sign anything until you’ve hired a lawyer.
The photographic evidence and eyewitness information you collect at the accident scene are important, but you also have to know what to do with the evidence you’ve documented as you begin the recovery process. Gather your evidence, the police report of the accident, and your medical report. Then call an experienced accident attorney to represent you in your truck accident claim. During the claim process, avoid posting on social media and refer all communication with insurance companies to your attorney.
Large trucking companies have powerful insurance providers who prioritize profits over paying out on claims. If you’ve gathered evidence at the scene of the accident, your truck accident attorney in can craft a more compelling case for compensation for damages. At Shapiro | Delgado | Hofmann, our skilled attorneys specialize in truck accident claims. We know how to leverage evidence to build strong cases for our clients. Don’t face the complexities of a truck accident claim alone – contact our truck accident attorneys in Sarasota and Bradenton for dedicated legal support and protect your rights.
