Promptly seek medical attention, document everything, and contact a lawyer, but do not give a recorded statement to the insurance company, and do not sign the insurance settlement offer letter without first consulting your attorney.
Advertisements for personal injury lawyers often make it sound like the first thing you should do after you get injured in a truck accident is to file a personal injury lawsuit. In fact, there are many preliminary steps you must take before you sue, not least among them finding out whether you are eligible to file a lawsuit. What you do in the minutes, hours, days, and weeks after the accident has an important effect on how good your chances are of winning your case and even whether the court will consider your lawsuit at all. Even if you are still in the waiting room of an urgent care clinic, waiting to be examined after an accident, it is not too soon to contact a Manchester, Connecticuttruck accident lawyer.
Your Health Comes First
Even if you feel fine, you should get a medical examination at a hospital emergency room or urgent care clinic immediately after the accident. This way, if you develop symptoms of whiplash injury or a concussion later, your medical records clearly indicate when the accident happened. The insurance company and the trucking company cannot convincingly argue that your symptoms are from a pre-existing condition.
Document Everything
The more documentation you can get at the scene of the accident, the better. Take pictures of the damaged vehicles, the weather conditions, and the road conditions. Call the police so that they can send an officer to the scene of the accident to write a police report.
Let Your Lawyer Do the Talking
A claims adjuster from your insurance company will call you in the days after the accident, but you should not talk to them. Their questions are aimed at getting you to admit that you are partially at fault for the accident. The more you talk and the more fault you accidentally admit, the less the insurance company will offer you and the less a court can award you in a truck accident lawsuit. This is because of Connecticut’scomparative negligence laws. If the insurance company calls, just tell them that you have hired a lawyer and give them the lawyer’s phone number, so your lawyer can speak on your behalf.
Think Before You Sign
The insurance company will send you a settlement offer letter several weeks to several months after the accident. Do not sign the letter, especially if you are still considering filing a lawsuit against the company that owns the truck that hit you. Instead, bring the letter to your lawyer. Even if your lawyer does not encourage you to sue, they might be able to negotiate with the insurance company for a better settlement.
Contact Berman & Russo About Truck Accident Cases
There is hardly such a thing as a minor truck accident, but a truck accident lawyer can help you regain your financial footing, with or without a lawsuit. Contact Berman & Russo in South Windsor, Connecticut or call 860-644-1548 to discuss your case.