Germantown, MD Car Accident Lawyer
When you are involved in a car accident, filing your case with insurance might not be enough. Although these cases can usually be handled through an insurance claim when there is property damage only, car accidents involving personal injury or disabilities might require a more sophisticated approach to seek the compensation you need.
If you or a loved one was injured in a car crash in the Germantown, MD area, contact Rice, Murtha & Psoras today. Our Germantown, MD, car accident lawyers may be able to take your case and work to get you the compensation you need to cover your injuries. For a free legal consultation, call (410) 694-7291 today.
What to Do After a Car Accident in Maryland
After a car accident, you should worry about getting to safety and getting any injuries the medical attention they need. If you can, pull your car off the road to a safe location and call 9-1-1.
You should ask for an ambulance if you, any of the passengers in your car, or anyone else involved in the accident needs medical attention. You should also ask for the police to respond to the crash.
If you can, you should collect information at the scene. First, you will need to exchange your information with the other driver, including your name, address, contact info, insurance info, and vehicle info.
You should gather this information for each car and driver involved in the crash so you can build your case later. If police respond, they will also take this information and form an accident report, which you should be able to get access to later.
Second, if your phone was not damaged in the crash or you have another camera with you, take pictures of the scene. You should get wide shots that help establish where all the cars are and what the intersection or roadway looked like, as well as close-ups of the vehicle damage and any injuries sustained in the crash.
These pictures can be extremely helpful later, as they help explain to a jury what happened and how the crash was the other driver’s fault.
Your injuries should be your first priority over collecting information at the scene of the crash. If you need to go to the emergency room for medical care or you are unconscious and cannot act at the scene, that’s fine.
If you are able to move and talk, see if you can get a friend or family member to come to the accident scene and take pictures and collect information in your stead. If not, focus on your recovery.
The police will collect the information they need, and if you are unable to stay at the scene, you may be able to use this information later. A police officer who responded to the crash may also be able to testify in court about what they witnessed once they arrived: how the cars were positioned, what injuries they saw, the road conditions, the lighting conditions, etc.
You and any other witnesses can testify to what happened before the crash.
Suing for Injuries in a Maryland Car Accident
When you are involved in a car crash, the other driver’s insurance may be able to cover some of the injuries you face. However, if you file your case as an insurance claim, the other driver’s insurance policy may not cover you as much as you would like it to.
Most auto insurance policies cover damages for medical expenses and lost wages from an injury, but these policies do not cover pain and suffering damages.
The damages they do cover may not be paid in full, which can also hurt your recovery. If you file a lawsuit instead, you may be able to claim these damages in full.
As part of a car accident lawsuit, you can claim the full cost of any damages you faced related to the accident. This means that any medical expenses stemming from car accident injuries, any wages these injuries caused you to lose, and any pain and suffering you faced because of the injuries can be claimed at their full value in court.
When you file a lawsuit after a car crash, you must prove that the other driver was at fault to get the compensation you claimed. This means pointing to traffic laws the driver violated and mistakes that the driver made on the road to prove that they caused the accident.
Errors like speeding and failing to use a turn signal could contribute to a crash, but fault is often more clear when issues like drunk driving or texting while driving are involved.
Your attorney can help you prove your case in court and prove the damages you suffered. The help of an experienced car accident lawyer is vital in many car accident cases.
Especially if the facts or circumstances of the accident are difficult to explain to a jury or make it hard to determine who was at fault, having a lawyer help you protect your claim and present the case may be essential.
Call Our Germantown Car Accident Injury Lawyers for a Free Legal Consultation
Car accident injuries can cause substantial injuries, leading to lost wages, medical expenses, and pain and suffering. If you suffered injuries in a car crash and need help to understand your options for how to seek financial compensation, call Rice, Murtha & Psoras’s Germantown car accident lawyers today. To set up a free legal consultation on your case, you can reach our attorneys at (410) 694-7291.
