Evidence is crucial in a car accident claim, as it can help one get the compensation they deserve. While it’s natural to be confused after a crash, you can make costly mistakes if you are not careful.
For this reason, if you are involved in an accident, consider staying in the car for a few minutes to calm down. Then, you can employ these tips:
Check if it’s safe to move around
Before getting out of your vehicle, confirm if you can move around. This includes checking if you have injuries. If you have severe injuries that hinder your movement or your injuries can potentially worsen if you move, stay put in the vehicle until medical help arrives.
If you have a passenger who can safely move around, they can help you collect evidence. Or you can call a loved one to the scene if they can arrive on time.
Take pictures
If you can safely exit your car, you should take pictures of the accident scene before things change. You need to capture the general view of the scene, your injuries, damage to your vehicle, damage to objects around (damaged street signs, guardrails and so on), the weather conditions, traffic signals and road signs and the road conditions (skid marks, roadside debris and so on).
Take pictures from different angles and have wide and close-up shots.
Contact information
You need to collect the contact information of the other driver and that of a few witnesses. When collecting the contact details of witnesses, request to get their statements. You can write down or record these statements.
Understanding the best ways to gather evidence after an accident can benefit your car accident claim.