While driving, the last thing you expect is to get into an accident, but it can happen any moment, and it does not entirely depend on how carefully you are driving – it can be someone else’s mistake, and you can just happen to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. In the United States, currently, 90 people die in car accidents every day. Additionally, 3 million people in the US are injured every year in car accidents.
In an unfortunate case of a car accident, the first thing you need to do is remain calm and keep your cool. Under no circumstances should you immediately leave the scene of the accident, even though the accident is minor or significant.
You should stop your car at once, and its engine should be turned off, and the car’s hazard lights switched on.
The next step should be to check if any injuries have been sustained in your car, including you and the people, if any, in your car.
In case of any injuries, you should immediately call for an ambulance. In the case that the car collision is minor and no injuries have been sustained, you should note it down so that the other people cannot lay a false claim to damages later on.
One of the states that have a really high number of car accident fatalities is Texas.
If you find yourself in such a situation, one of the main things you need to do is file a crash report. A Texas crash or accident report is used by law enforcement to record the details relating to an accident involving any vehicle.
The details in the report are recorded by the officer who attends the scene of the accident. The importance of a car accident crash report cannot be signified enough, and under no circumstances should you ignore it regardless if the accident is minor or significant.
Another state with a high number of car accidents is Colorado.
So if you happen to be involved in one and you’re anywhere near Denver, make sure you research the best Denver auto accident attorney before just settling on any old lawyer.
The repeated urgency to file a crash report even in the case of minor accidents is being applied because sometimes the damage to the car or injuries to the people involved in the car accident are latent, and can appear days, or even weeks after the accident. So it is better to be safe than sorry, and take action when you have the chance.
Once you have contacted the police, do not just wait for them, and if you are physically able, you should start noting down the essential details regarding the accident at once.
More often than not, police will show up at the scene of the accident to file a crash report, but even for some reason, it does not appear due to the accident being of minor nature or any other purpose for that matter, you should still jot down the details.
The things you should not miss out on are:
- Complete details of the vehicles that have been affected in the accident, including their registration number model, make, and color.
- The date and time at which the crash took place.
- The conditions of driving which could have affected the accident including the road quality, the weather, and the lighting conditions.
- The nature of damage caused to the vehicles involved in the accident
- Any injuries incurred by the people involved in the accident, including the drivers, passengers, and any pedestrians.
- Contact details of the witnesses, if any, were present.
- Use your phone camera to take as many pictures as possible relevant to the accident.
The essentials which should be included in a car accident crash report are:
Witness statements
It is imperative to collect the contact information of the witnesses of the car accident.
Regardless of your perception as to what they have to say is necessary or not, you should note what the witness accounts are as they might come in handy in any future legal actions. An easy way to do so is to record their accounts on your cell phones.
In case you are injured because of the severe nature of the accident and unable to record these statements, the police will do that.
Complete details of the accident
Firstly you have to get the basics done, which will include who was involved in the accident, where the accident took place, when the accident took place, how the accident took place, and why the accident took place.
The details should include the time and date of the accident, people included in the accident, and their contact details, including the drivers, passengers, and pedestrians.
The details of the vehicles involved in the accident should also be noted down, including their make, model, and color. Also included in the report should be the conditions in which the accident took place, including the road, weather, and lighting.
Photographic evidence
It would not be wrong to assume that an overwhelming majority of people carry cell phones with them, and almost all of them have a camera.
So as soon as the accident takes place, you should start taking pictures of any and all damage incurred by the vehicle or your body. You should include photographs of anything you can associate with the accident, including any skid marks on the road, the weather conditions, and if there is an intersection.
Injuries and damage incurred
You should analyze the initial evident injuries incurred by the accident and note them down.
At the same time, the damage incurred to the vehicle should also be noted down as at a later stage, when any latent injuries appear, the damage to the vehicle, which was noted down, might become a testament to your claim that these injuries were caused by the accident.
Information of the police officer
As soon as the police arrive on the scene, you should ask to get their card or contact information of the officer who is tasked with filing the crash report.
In case you remember some details of the accident at a later time, it will be easier for you to directly contact the police officer and get the crash report updated, and this can be really helpful in the situation of a lawsuit originating from the accident.
Conclusion
Knowing what to do in the face of a crisis is very important to minimize the damage and the aftermath. Having detailed information about what a car accident report should include, you can prepare yourself for any unforeseen circumstances.
Have you ever reported a car accident? What was your experience like? Let us know in the comments below.
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