Steps Involved in Preparing For and Dealing With A Traffic Accident

California and Car Accidents

Below you will find tips and a checklist for car accident preparedness. Why is this important? An unfortunate fact of life for many Californians is being in automobile accidents. These wrecks can happen to even the most conscientious drivers.

The odds of sharing roads with distracted, impaired drivers or people speeding are high. Yearly in California, the successful traffic accident lawyers at Ehline Law Firm have helped victims. These professionals assist in hundreds and perhaps thousands of costly automobile wrecks.

These mishaps occur on freeways and tollways. But they are also frequent on highways, bridges, and other roadways. Greater Los Angeles, in particular, is a Mecca for hairy motor vehicle accidents.

The mass transit system is defunct in many large towns. Furthermore, this is expansive geography. Thus, the only efficient way to travel is by private automobile. Thus, there is a severe and day-to-day risk of suffering in a serious fender bender. These accidents can happen almost everywhere you venture by motorcar.

There are Many Types of Accidents

There are many types of “accidents.” An unfortunate fact of life for many Californians is being in automobile accidents. These wrecks can happen to even the most conscientious drivers. The odds of sharing roads with distracted, impaired drivers or people speeding are high. Yearly in California, traffic accident lawyers at Ehline Law Firm help victims.

Our legal professionals assist in hundreds and perhaps thousands of costly automobile wrecks. These mishaps occur on freeways and tollways. But they are also frequent on highways, bridges, and other roadways. Greater Los Angeles, in particular, is a Mecca for hairy motor vehicle accidents.

Primarily, these arise from drivers “tailgating” or following too close.

Auto Accident Preparedness Checklist

Keeping some essential items in your vehicle readily available can help tremendously. You can be in the case of a bad wreck at any time, anyplace. Thus, it makes sense to be ready. We recommend an “in the event of emergency” kit. You can assemble and keep it in the trunk.

But if space allows, one is acceptable in your automobile’s glove compartment or console. Some people call these “bug-out bags.” But really, these are just basic items to help you survive. Hence, it won’t matter whether you broke down or crashed. No matter what, you have basic survival needs to be met.

Some items to include in your bug-out bag are:

Medical insurance information.

• A list of family members. Make sure to include any pre-existing medical conditions, medication allergies, and current medications.
• The name and telephone number of one or two emergency contacts
• Road flares.
• If trunk space allows, emergency cones and triangles are very useful.
• A First Aid Kit.
• Bottled water and MREs (Meals Ready to Eat).
• Pre-paid cell phone with a spare battery.
• A disposable camera.
• A pen and some writing paper.

Steps To Take Immediately After an Automobile Accident

Remember, even though you are stressed out, you can take some necessary measures. This will lessen the grief and uncertainty.

• Keep your cool. Staying calm in the aftermath of an automobile accident helps you. Furthermore, it comforts your passengers, if any. It also makes it easier for law enforcement or medical personnel to be called to the scene. Seven helpful tips on what to do in the aftermath of a crash are here.

The Details of Your Car Accident and Your Attorney

Turning details of your accident over to capable legal hands relieves stress and anxiety — this aids in the most favorable outcome for you. Once law enforcement and insurance agencies complete their investigations, your attorneys work. The lawyer will ensure your rights get protected and upheld.

The wide range of roadway mishaps seasoned counsel helps with include minor impacts. These include bumper tapping. Mostly, these are forcible “rear-ender” impacts between two cars at low speeds. Also, they contain significant influences cornering a vehicle too fast. This could make it roll over onto a sidewalk. Furthermore, these cases have been known for crushing things or even people.

Typical cases for which advocates assist victims are inattentive drivers hitting stationary objects — for example, people texting while in traffic often hit rear bumpers. Also, sometimes idling at a red traffic light, the vehicle slowly creeps forward. Sometimes a negligent driver may haphazardly run over a child or adult on foot. Mostly, it is in a crosswalk. Hence, the poor souls we help could be cyclists. These people could also be kids thrown to the pavement.

Typical Car Crash Scenarios:

Other types of common scenarios involve severe injury and death. Examples include when a bad driver smashes into, crushes, or drags a human. Furthermore, dragging victims could be animals like dogs or cats. Thus, it could just be an innocent creature crossing roads. Moreover, news reports often show the aftermath of tragic crash scenes.

As a result, in one of these, people were killed when a car crashed into a packed diner [1. Pregnant Woman Dragged Under Car as it Crashes Into Restaurant] or residential home. [2. Car Crashes Into House ] The latter type of problem is what we expect from a drunken driver.

But these cases can also arise due to a bad repair job. Last, it could even be from defective automobile parts. Our dedicated firm helps in all the above situations. Motorists call these types of incidents “car crashes.” The CHP calls them “traffic collisions.”

What Does Your Attorney Advise?

It would help if you did not talk about the accident with anyone. You must not sign any documents concerning the accident. That is your lawyer’s job. Thus, all papers and communications should get sent to them. Also, this includes any telephone calls from your insurance agency. All calls should get forwarded to your attorney.

Finally, any documents you may receive in the mail need to be reviewed by counsel. The same goes for those sent via courier. They should go to your lawyer. If a claim arises from your mishap, your advocate can best advise on how to proceed.

Personal Injuries And Car Insurance Claims

Car insurance claims for personal injuries are not uncommon with the number of automobile accidents that occur daily. When a vehicle collision occurs, it is covered by the at-fault driver’s insurance policy. Filing a claim with the insurance company is a direct way of being offered a settlement by the insurer for injuries and other damages. The insurance company will act quickly in providing the claimant with a low payment. Moreover, they hope the plaintiff will accept less than their claim is worth.

So the safest way to handle the insurance company settlement offers is with the assistance of a car accident attorney. Most of all, these trained legal advocates will know whether the offer made by the insurance company is lowball or fair. Insurance companies have a primary method they use after a traffic accident that may result in a claim. Our job is to make them pay you more.

Initial Contact

The at-fault driver’s insurance company will contact the injured party since, at the scene of the collision, a police report will be filed listing the driver the insurance company insures at fault or at least partially at fault. The insurance company will contact the injured party quickly and offer a low settlement. This is common with all insurance companies, and it is ordinary for them to have their legal department.

The insurance company adjusters and legal department work on settling claims against the insurer for the lowest amount possible when a claim is filed, or they contact a party who has been hurt. This is why it is often advisable to consult an attorney to handle the settlement offers from the insurance company if there have been serious injuries sustained.

The Second Contact

The second contact with the insurance company will be when they challenge and dispute the claim that has been made. This is done once the injured party has rejected the initial small settlement amount. The at-fault party’s insurance company will require medical bills to be sent to them and may request other documents, which should be cleared by an attorney first. Then the insurance company may offer a larger settlement, but it may not be as high as what the claimant deserves.

The Next Contact

The next time the insurance company contacts the injured party, it will often be through their legal litigation branch. When an insurance claim goes to court or mediation because a settlement cannot be reached, the insurance litigation branch will take over handling the claim. They may attempt to deny the claim stating that the insurance policy does not cover it, and they will investigate when the lawsuit was filed since there is a time limitation on when a claim against the insurance company must be filed, or the claimant gives up their right to recover a settlement. When it gets to this point with the insurance company’s legal branch, the person filing a claim should have legal representation.

The Goal Is Indemnification

Indemnification. This is a word used in insurance law when liability transfers from one party to another. This is when an insurance policy is purchased with a monthly or quarterly premium paid. Then after an accident, the insurance company assists with the accident claim against the insured driver.

Also, if you have sustained injuries in an automobile accident, contact us to discover more about your legal rights and duties. Don’t blow the statute of limitations, no matter what. We can help you and your loved ones by calling (833) LETS-SUE. Thus, you can get a free evaluation of your case today.