Every year in the U.S., there are about 100,000 truck accidents that result in injuries. These accidents are especially dangerous since trucks are larger and heavier than the average vehicle. If you have been involved in a truck accident, you might be wondering how you can make a claim.
You have to be careful because there are many errors with truck accident claims that you may accidentally make. These common errors could ruin your claim and leave you with nothing or next to nothing. But where should you start?
Keep reading and learn more about what kinds of errors there are and how you can avoid them.
1. Not Filing a Police Report After the Crash
Suppose a truck crashes into your car. The damage might not be very serious, and no one is injured, so you might not consider filing a police report. But this is always a big mistake.
This is because if you don’t have a police report, there is nothing to prove that this crash ever happened. A police report is especially important for your insurance company. Insurance companies always want proof whenever you’re involved in a vehicle accident.
If you can’t produce any proof, your insurance company may not help you, even if your car is damaged. If you don’t have a police report, the insurance company could also blame you for the accident, even if it wasn’t your fault.
Not having a police report also means that you didn’t collect any important information from the crash. Any vital information that could have helped you would instead get forgotten.
2. Collecting Information From the Driver and Witnesses
Everyone knows that you’re supposed to collect information from the driver who crashed into you. You should gather their contact information and any other information you think is relevant to the crash. But many people forget about gathering information from witnesses as well.
Witnesses are very helpful in case your claim goes to court. The more witnesses there are, the better. This is because they will paint a more accurate picture of what happened during and after the accident.
Make sure you get the contact information of any witnesses that were present. This will help you down the line. It will also help your lawyer if they need to collect more information about the accident. Any truck accident case requires a lot of information to hold steady.
If you don’t have all the truck accident claim documents and info ready, the process will be more difficult.
3. Not Going to the Hospital for Treatment
Many people won’t go to the hospital if they’re injured after an accident. They may feel that hospital treatment isn’t necessary and that they can heal at home. But ignoring a truck accident injury this way is a bad idea.
This is because your insurance company may not help you if it thinks that the accident wasn’t too serious. They may also view it as negligence. You may say that your injuries are severe, but if you don’t get hospital treatment, the insurance company may not believe you.
But what if you don’t think you’re injured after the accident? You should still go see a doctor and seek treatment. This is because you may have injuries that you may not be aware of.
You may have suffered from whiplash, or you may have internal injuries. When in doubt, go to a hospital and get treatment.
4. Not Following Your Doctor’s Advice
Suppose you go to a hospital to get treatment, and your doctor gives you some advice for your recovery. If you hurt your leg, the doctor may recommend that you don’t walk on it for a week or two until it heals. The doctor may also recommend that you get plenty of rest.
If you ignore this advice, this may harm your claim. If anyone finds out that you’re walking around right after the accident, your claim may not seem very serious. Your insurance company may use this as evidence to prove that your injuries weren’t serious and that the claim isn’t as valuable.
This can cause you to lose a lot of money from your claim. The claim might be dropped if it seems that you’re perfectly fine after the accident. This is why you should always follow your doctor’s advice.
Even if you think that you don’t need much recovery time, you should still do what the doctor says.
5. Not Preserving Evidence of the Crash
Preserving evidence is very important. This is because you can show this evidence to your lawyer later on. Your lawyer can then use this information to show the severity of the accident, which can help you get a better claim from an insurance company.
The best way to preserve evidence is to take pictures of the crash. Take pictures of the damage your car suffered. Capture the damage that the truck sustained as well.
Take pictures of any other structures that were damaged in the crash. You can take pictures of any injuries you may have as well. Don’t share this evidence with anyone other than your lawyer.
This ensures that you and your lawyer have the upper hand in the claim.
6. Signing a Medical Authorization
The insurance company in question may send you a lot of paperwork for a medical authorization. This paperwork may look very important, and it may insist that you sign it. But you don’t have to, and you shouldn’t.
Signing a medical authorization for an insurance company means that you are handing that information to that company. This is bad news because the company can diminish the severity of your injuries. They may insist that your injuries are not as severe as they are so that you can’t get as much money from the claim.
There is no reason for an insurance company to have such a detailed collection of your medical records. Signing these papers will also give the company access to medical information that is not relevant to the accident.
7. Giving a Recorded Statement
An insurance adjuster may try to record a statement of you describing the crash. Doing this is a bad idea. Giving a statement to the insurance company is not required.
You may accidentally say something that may damage your case. This could prevent you from getting as much money as you were going to from the claim. It is best to say no to the insurance adjuster if they want to record you giving a statement.
They may insist, but you still have the power to say no.
8. Sharing Too Much on Social Media
Many people make the mistake of sharing the news of their accident on social media. They may share pictures of the accident, talk about it, and so on. This is a terrible thing to do because the insurance company could use this information to show that your accident wasn’t very serious.
If you are well enough to be sharing this information on social media, how severe could your accident have been? It is best to be very quiet about the accident. You should only talk about it in-depth with your lawyer.
This ensures that the information won’t fall into the wrong hands. You should also avoid taking pictures of yourself after the accident. If you broke your leg but then posted a picture of yourself walking around, this can be damaging to your case.
9. Settling Your Claim Too Early
The claim filing process is stressful. Many people want it to be done as fast as possible. You may fall into the trap of settling your claim too early because you want to wrap everything up.
You will receive a fraction of what you could have gotten from the claim if you settle too early. It is better to wait a little longer so that you can wrap the claim up properly.
10. Not Hiring a Good Lawyer
You always need a good lawyer after a truck accident. What should you look for in an accident attorney in my area? You need to make sure that the lawyer has a good reputation and plenty of experience.
An experienced lawyer can help you through any problem you may have. This ensures that you will get the compensation you deserve from your claim.
Avoid These Common Errors With Truck Accident Claims
A truck accident injury can ruin your health and your finances as well. Thankfully, you can file a claim and get the compensation you deserve from the party that was at fault. To get maximum compensation and ensure your claim is accepted, look out for these common errors with truck accident claims and be sure to avoid them.