3 Must-Dos to Protect Your Rights After an Accident
If you’ve just been in a car accident caused by someone else driving negligently, the moments afterward can feel chaotic and overwhelming. Your medical and financial wellbeing can feel at risk and knowing where to turn can be challenging, but at Wakefield Law, when we work with clients on their personal injury cases, we always say what you do right after the accident (or as close after as possible) can make all the difference—not just for your health, but for your ability to recover damages for medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.
Here are three essential steps you should take immediately after a crash:
Exchange Information and Get the Police Report
At the scene of the accident, it can feel completely out of control and scary, but after you’ve made sure you aren’t in immediate medical danger, here is what to do:
Exchange names, contact details, and insurance information with the other driver.
Call law enforcement and request an official accident report. This document will be critical later—it provides an objective account of what happened and may include citations or fault determinations.
Tip: In Virginia, police reports are often available within a few days through the DMV. Your attorney can help you obtain a copy if needed.
Document the Scene: Photos and Witness Statements
Evidence and memory fade quickly. Preserve it while you can:
Take clear photos of everything - all vehicles involved, license plates, damages, road conditions, traffic signs or cameras, and any visible injuries to yourself or your passengers.
If anyone witnessed the accident, ask for their contact information and a brief statement. Neutral third-party accounts can be powerful in proving fault.
Tip: Even if you’re shaken up, a few minutes of documentation can make or break your ability to recover from an insurance company if there is a dispute about causation or damages.
Seek Medical Attention Immediately
Even if you feel “okay,” don’t wait:
Adrenaline after an accident can hide symptoms and mere soreness or whiplash can turn into something much more dangerous – get an expert opinion after a crash.
Go to the emergency room, urgent care, or your primary care provider as soon as possible, better safe than sorry.
A medical evaluation creates a record of your injuries and helps guide your recovery. If there is a two week period after the accident before you seek medical treatment, insurance companies can suggest that you weren’t really injured if you didn’t go sooner.
Tip: Don’t just make an appointment with a physical therapist, chiropractor, or masseuse after an accident when faced with soreness. Serious injuries can hide symptoms, and it helps your claim if a physician prescribes treatment, and then you do it, to alleviate the symptoms after an accident.
Why Legal Help Matters
When someone else causes your accident, you shouldn’t have to bear the burden alone. At Wakefield Law, we work every day to make sure our clients feel supported and protected after an accident. Knowing how to speak the language of insurance companies can protect you from inadvertently damaging your case, and the stress of dealing with a claim is the last thing you should be worrying about when healing. At Wakefield Law, we help clients preserve their evidence after an accident, get the medical treatment they need to heal, and put together a strong claim to recover funds from the negligent party insurance. Negotiation and, if necessary, litigation, are our specialties - You focus on healing—we’ll handle the rest.