Teaneck, New Jersey Personal Injury Attorneys

After an accident, it's important to first speak with a personal injury attorney while making sure to do the following as well:

1. Protect your interests
2. Preserve as much evidence from your accident as possible
3. Inventory costs created by your injuries

Protect Your Interests

The vast majority of insurance companies are in business to make money. In order to reduce costs, insurers train claims adjusters in methods for reducing claim amounts. For example, since the full effect of some soft tissue, head, and back injuries can take weeks or months to become evident, claims adjusters often try and settle a claim as soon as possible after an accident. If you provide a statement to an insurer or agree to an offer before the full impact of your injuries are known, you may not be able to pursue legal action at a later date to recover further damages.

For these reasons, it is important to talk to an experienced personal injury lawyer before speaking with an insurance agent. Insurers realize once an attorney gets involved, they can't intimidate people into accepting an offer that does not reflect the total financial impact of their injuries.

Preserve any Evidence Involved

Additionally, what you do in the early stages of your case can effect what happens later. For instance, if you agree to release your medical records to an insurance company, their doctor may argue in court your injuries were from a pre-existing condition or not the result of your accident. Or, if you accept a check to replace your totaled car, the car becomes the property of the insurance company. If you go to court to sue for more damages later, chances are the car will have been destroyed, removing the possibility of conducting tests on it and recovering evidence.

While it isn't always possible to recover every piece of evidence from an accident, taking pictures soon afterwards, keeping pieces of debris from the accident scene and other artifacts is important. In most traffic related accidents, debris is removed to the side of the road. Collecting tire treads, broken windshields, and anything else before an insurance company does can help our investigator determine what happened.

Inventory Costs Associated with Your Injuries

Any costs associated with your accident should be recorded and kept for later at trial or negotiations. That means any receipts from prescription medications, any pay stubs reflecting lost or reduced wages, hospital bills, invoices for medical equipment, bus tickets, grocery store receipts for special food - any and everything connected to your accident must be saved. Additionally, taking pictures of your injuries while keeping a diary of the healing process is also important as a record of your pain and suffering.

Contact the Law Offices of Benjamin G. Kelsen

We have the knowledge and experience to help our clients overcome personal injuries. For more information regarding our practice and how we can help you avoid being taken advantage of, contact the Law Offices of Benjamin G. Kelsen today.