Watch What You Say After An Accident
Michael Babboni
Car Accidents
In the moments after an accident has occurred, “chaos” is an appropriate word to apply to the situation. Just seconds before, you were in your car, minding your own business and making your way to your destination. Then, faster than you can process, there’s an impact, you realize your vehicle has made contact with another vehicle, and the accident plays out, resulting in cars possibly leaving the road, or, even worse, injuries occurring.There are a lot of things that you need to do in the wake of an accident, the most important being that you check to make sure you and any other passengers are okay, or, if it’s clear that injuries have occurred, seek help. And while it may be difficult to keep other things mind as you recover from the accident and deal with the aftermath, one thing is certain. You need to be careful of any statements you make during this time.
Is Essential
Of course, trying to be calm and rational in the wake of a car accident is one of the hardest things you can be expected to do, especially if friends and/or family are injured. At the same time, however, maintaining your calm in the face of this situation is one of the most important things you can do to safely efficiently deal with the situation, as well as make any future legal actions much easier to execute.
This is especially true when it comes to communication. Once again, ensuring that people are okay is paramount, so you should be talking to people in your own vehicle, as well as those in the other vehicle to check on the condition of others. Beyond this, however, you should not be discussing the particulars of the accident itself, only what needs to be done in the aftermath.
All Remarks Are Legally Admissible
An important legal consideration that will have ramifications all way down to a courtroom, with lawyers asking questions, is statements made on the scene. Anything you say in the wake of an accident can—and will—be considered factual statements about the nature of the accident. In fact, statements made by participants at the scene of an accident are often given extra weight, because in most instances, people are too shaken and upset to tell cool, calculated lies designed to forward an agenda.
In other words, if you say without thinking, “I’m sorry, I didn’t see you,” and that statement is remembered by the other driver, by your passengers, other witnesses, or is even recorded on a phone that is taking video footage of the scene, you’ve just created evidence for the court. A statement of apology and not seeing the other driver can easily be taken to mean that you are admitting fault, and you are admitting negligence, or at the very least inattentiveness.
Get Proper Help
This is why, when an accident occurs, once all required medical action has been taken, you should seek the services of a personal injury lawyer in St. Petersburg. With an experienced advocate you can quickly find out what you should and should not say in the days and weeks to come if you are pushing forward with a personal injury lawsuit.