Pedestrian Accident Checklist: 6 Things You Should Do Immediately

In the state of California, it was reported that, on average, a pedestrian was killed every 81 minutes due to traffic crashes in 2020, with a pedestrian getting injured every 10 minutes. The year saw a total of 6,516 pedestrian fatalities in traffic accidents, indicating a 3.9 percent increase compared to 2019. Shockingly, the number of pedestrian deaths escalated by 26 percent between 2014 and 2018. The city of Bakersfield, CA, constitutes a sizable number of these fatalities. 

When you get involved in a pedestrian accident, the last thing on your mind would be getting compensated. Your immediate priority will be to tend to your injuries. However, you also have the right to be compensated by the driver at fault.

If you have been involved in an accident as a pedestrian in Bakersfield, hire a Bakersfield pedestrian accident law firm to protect your interests. They will help you with filing a claim and negotiating a settlement. To ensure that you will be fairly compensated for your injuries and other losses, here are six important things you should do after an accident.

1) Take care of your medical situation

After the accident, confirm your physical health status. If you are bleeding, you can administer first aid, whether this includes putting pressure on the wound or applying a tourquinet. As losing 40% or more of your blood volume will usually lead to death, if the injuries or bleeding is severe, contact emergency health services immediately.

Make sure you get a medical checkup to ascertain the extent of your injuries as well as receive treatment. A medical checkup can reveal internal injuries that you may not be aware of. Your safety and health are critical after an accident. Get medical help as soon as possible.

2) Contact the police

Get in touch with the police and report the accident. The local law enforcement officers will arrive at the scene of the accident to record the incident. Provide truthful information regarding the accident. Do not say anything if you are not sure what happened.

Calling the police to the scene will be helpful as they can determine whether the driver was driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol. The police report will be an essential piece of evidence when it comes to determining the liability of the accident and how much compensation you should be awarded.

3) Get information about the driver

Get information about the driver that caused the accident. On the minimum, get their name, driver’s license number, and insurance provider contact information. If the driver is not the owner of the car, get the details of the owner.

Also, get the contact information of any witnesses of the accident. Your attorney may need to follow up with the witnesses later on when he wants to file your claim. Also, your insurance company may need to follow up with the witnesses when processing your claim.

4) Preserve evidence of the accident

Gather evidence at the accident scene. Remember, should the case go to trial, evidence will be crucial to the outcome of the case. Use your smartphone to take photographs or videos at the accident scene. For example, take photographs of the car, your injuries, tire skid marks, the condition of the road, and so on.

However, taking evidence should not be your first priority. If you have been severely hurt in the accident, concentrate on your health. Get immediate medical attention. There are other pieces of evidence that your lawyer can gather along the way to help with your case.

5) Contact the insurance company

Get in touch with your insurance company and inform them about the accident. The company may send its agents to the scene of the accident to help with gathering information. Explain in detail to the insurance provider how the accident happened, when it happened, where it happened, and so on. When providing the accident details, do not admit liability, even if you think you were in the wrong.

6) Hire an accident attorney

You can file a personal injury claim with your insurance company and follow up on the compensation on your own. However, if you do this, there are high chances that you will end up with a raw deal. For example, you may be frustrated along the way with the many steps involved in following up the claim to the extent that you end up settling for whatever amount you are offered.

The lawyer will ensure that you are offered fair compensation in a timely manner. The attorney will know how much you are entitled to based on experience and similar cases they might have handled in the past.