What to do After a Sacramento Motorcycle Accident?
Riding a motorcycle can be a wonderful experience. You have a chance to get out in the open air and enjoy the fun. Some people enjoy the savings in gas and the flexibility that having a motorcycle can give them. But it can be dangerous on the road when it comes to riding your motorcycle and accidents can be common along the way. If you are in a motorcycle accident, you may wonder what steps you should take to keep yourself safe.
If you are in a motorcycle accident, seek out medical attention if you are hurt right away. If you feel fine, then get the contact information of the driver and any witnesses that may have seen what happened. You can call 911 during this time and get a police report started to give to your insurance agent. Contact insurance to help with filing the claim and getting it taken care of. You may also want to consider whether hiring an attorney makes sense for your case too.
You can feel disoriented after a motorcycle accident and this is one where the injuries can be severe. Moseley Collins, a top motorcycle accident lawyer in Sacramento, advises having the right legal team on your side will help you stay safe and will ensure that you will be able to win your claim if things go wrong.
What Steps Should I Take If I’m in a Motorcycle Accident in Sacramento?
There are several steps that everyone needs to take when they are in a motorcycle accident. These will help keep things moving along smoothly and can help with documentation and more as you work to get through the process. Some of the steps you should take after being in a motorcycle accident includes:
Check Your Health and Injuries
If you are severely injured, you need to get to the hospital as soon as possible. Leave the rest for the other driver and everyone else. Call 911 and get an ambulance there as soon as possible if you suspect that you or the other person is severely injured and if you are struggling to breathe or move.
Call the Police
For those who are not severely injured, it is important to start gathering information and getting a police report done. This will be important for the police, your insurance company, and a lawyer if you decide to hire one later. You need to first call 911 and get local law enforcement in there to help. They will take a police report and can help collect some of the necessary information to get the case started. That police report will be useful later if there are any fights.
Get Contact Information From Those Around
Start by sharing information with the person who was in the accident as well. Both of you will need this for the police report and to send to your insurance company as well. If anyone else was around, then ask them for their contact information. You can use this for statements about it later on. The police will likely ask them for their information on the crash as well, so you don’t need to worry about doing interviews at this time.
Take Pictures of the Crash
You can use your phone for this one. Take videos or pictures of where the accident happened, the damage that was done to your motorcycle and the other vehicle, and any injuries that you suffered. This can provide some of the context needed later if you have trouble with your settlement or if you end up in a civil lawsuit. Even if the police take some, it is good to have your own.
Seek Medical Attention
Once the police have gathered your statement and it is safe to go, you may want to visit the hospital and get checked out. You may not see any damage or injuries, but having a professional look you over can be safe and allows you to catch a potential problem before it gets worse.
Hire an Attorney
It is a good idea to have an attorney on your side through this process. Many insurance companies will try to cut costs by making it more difficult to get a claim approved, and then you are on. your own for medical bills and repairing your motorcycle. Having legal representation helps back you up and can make it easier to get the compensation you need.
Keeping Safe on the Road
Hopefully, a motorcycle accident does not happen to you. Following the rules of the road and watching out for traffic that is nearby can go a long way to making that happen. But when an accident does happen, being careful, working with local law enforcement and your insurance provider, and hiring a personal injury attorney can go a long way to keeping you safe and helping you get through the accident too.