Accidents are usually unprepared for. No one knows when an accident will occur. Some accidents can have a devastating effect on the victims. The National Institute of Highway Safety reports that about 17,000 accidents happen every day or 33,224 every year in the US, resulting in about 36,096 fatalities in 2019.
Accidents, whether minor or significant, come with some impacts. Sometimes you may get minor injuries. At other times some may have serious injuries which may result in death.
We do not wish you got involved in a car crash, but per chance you did, here are some tips on what you can do if you find yourself involved in a car accident. Also, learn how to get bodily injury claims for settlement from such accidents.
Ensure You and Your Passengers are Safe
Once you find yourself in a car accident, the first thing imaginable is to be sure you are safe. Your safety is paramount. You have to stay alive and safe before thinking of anything else.
Once you know you are safe, check for the safety of other passengers as well for any injuries or casualties. If everyone is well, see how you can get out of the car away from the accident car. Please do the same for your passengers by helping them come out of the vehicle.
Check for any bodily harm. Check to see that you did not sustain any injuries. Scan through your whole body to see if there is any swollen part. This is because, at this point, you may not feel any pain.
After ensuring your safety, then you can take any other step.
Call for Help Where Necessary
No matter the nature of the accident you may have, people will naturally come around to see where they can be of help. If the accident is such that you can’t handle it alone, you have to call for help.
Whether they are passers-by or neighbors, seek help from people around the vicinity of the accident. If it is a medical condition, call for help. Whatever it is, call for help.
If your car is damaged to the extent that you have to be assisted in coming out of it, you must shout for help. You may need help to get you and your passengers out of danger. You may need help to take you to the hospital to save your life.
Call the Police
Call the police to report the accident. Depending on your country area, the police are usually investigating car accidents.
The accident report will assist the insurance companies in determining what claims they are entitled to. In some cases, either the insurance company’s agent or an independent investigator does the investigation to ascertain the costs and causes of the damage.
While calling the police, you have to report what led to the accident and if there are any casualties. The police may want to check for any criminal act on your part leading to the accident.
Check Your Car for Possible Damages
After ensuring the safety of everyone in the car and probably calling the police, you don’t want to abandon your car just like that.
Check your car thoroughly for any damages done to it. A physical look will suffice. If there are no serious damages to the car, you can drive it to safety. But if it has severe injuries, you have to leave it there for either the police or the agency responsible for road safety to evacuate it.
If you can move your car again without serious damage, you may wish to visit your doctor or the nearest hospital for a possible check-up. Sometimes, you may have internal injuries that may not immediately manifest after a car crash.
Claim Bodily Injury
Now you have to make a bodily injury claim settlement from your insurance company; that’s the primary reason you insured your vehicle in the first place. You have to get a lawyer or seek professional advice from your insurance company to do this.
Making a bodily injury claim for settlement from an accident is not difficult. You have to make an appropriate report of the accident. You also need to present your medical bills as part of the claims you want to make.
State date, place, time, and a brief description of what happened. File for your settlement claim. If the other driver is at fault, you can sue him and make further claims or compensation from his insurers.
Conclusion
When an accident occurs, the most important thing is to ensure that you are alive. You can do any other thing if you survive the crash. If the safety of life is assured, other things can follow.
If you suddenly hit or be hit by another car, follow the steps listed above to stay safe and maintain your health.
Sometimes, filing for a claim settlement may take some time because of the legal process it requires. As soon as you recover from the accident, ensure that you file for it as your compensation from your insurance firm.
