After a car accident, your first thought may not be about how to cover your injuries or who will pay for the damage. You’re focusing on whether everyone is okay, contacting the police or EMS services, or if there’s any more danger from other drivers. It’s completely understandable if protecting evidence is not your top priority after the crash, but it is one of the most important things you can do to ensure you recover what you are owed from a negligent driver.
Some of the most essential evidence to protect your claim for a car accident can be found at the crash site right after the accident. A Farmington car accident lawyer can help you find and preserve the evidence you need to defend your claim. Call (505) 325-9898 to schedule a consultation to start your car accident claim.
Essential Evidence to Protect Your Car Accident Claim
Personal injury cases, like suing for a car accident caused by someone else’s negligence, rely on evidence to reinforce who was liable for the damages and any injuries that you suffered. Some pieces of evidence can be collected at the scene and others can be found after the fact. Useful evidence includes:
Photos or Videos of the Accident Scene
After an accident, you must collect photos or videos of the scene. You can handle this personally if you are well enough, or your passenger can take pictures or make a video of the details of the scene for you. These pictures or videos need to capture how badly your car is damaged, any of your personal injuries, your passenger’s injuries, damage to other personal property, and what the surrounding area looks like. For instance, you could take a picture that showed the at-fault driver drove through a Yield sign or there was a stop sign they ignored. Your video can also show the road conditions, such as whether the ground was wet or dry.
Police Reports
Police reports are official documents explaining what happened in a car crash. Police officers will take control of a crash site and record what they saw as they arrive at the scene. They will detail where the vehicles involved were, if any of the crash victims were alert or out of their vehicles, and any other observations that may be relevant to determining who shared blame for causing the crash, like whether the other driver was under the influence of alcohol or illicit substances. You can request a copy of a police report, which can give you strong proof that you did not cause your crash.
Witness Statements & Contact Information
Although eyewitness testimony can be shaky, you need to try to collect as many reliable statements as you can from anyone who saw or heard the crash. If a witness cannot give a complete statement, you can ask for their contact information so that your lawyer can follow up with them later. These witnesses can add more details to a report’s account of your story. For instance, an eyewitness saw the semi-truck that hit you speed through the yellow light a block from your accident. Your car accident claim attorney can prove that anecdote with video from your crash, showing the truck was moving far too fast.
Injury Reports & Medical Records
Car accidents can cause severe injuries, like broken bones, brain injuries, and, in extreme cases, fatalities. Emergency medical services are often dispatched to check on victims to ensure their injuries are not life-threatening or to start trauma care as soon as possible. EMTs and other emergency responders make their own reports. Whether you’re driven to a care center, like a hospital, or choose to go after the incident on your own, your medical care provider will document your injuries, your prognosis, and any prescribed treatments. These reports are essential to showing how much you suffered and what future costs you may face to return to a life as close to the life you had before the accident.
Injury Journal
An injury journal is an effective method to document how severe your pain and injuries are and how much they improve over the course of your recovery. These journals are used to argue how much pain and suffering you experienced because of the other driver’s negligence. You can talk to your medical care provider to explain how to appropriately rate or describe your pain. Your entries can explain how much your life has been affected by the crash, and what might help you return to a normal life.
How Do I Collect Evidence After a Car Accident?
After a crash, you may need assistance collecting evidence. You may not be healthy enough to move about on your own, or your phone could have been disabled because of the accident. Some evidence can be collected at the scene, and other pieces of evidence take more time to collect.
What Evidence Should I Collect at the Scene?
Some evidence is only going to exist immediately after the crash. Once rescue personnel arrive and clear the scene, earth-shattering evidence could be lost. You need to get your photos immediately, along with the eyewitnesses’ contact information before they leave. You should also get the name and badge number of any supervising police officers or senior EMTs on the scene in case your legal team needs to reach out to them later. Finally, you should make a note of any businesses that have outdoor surveillance cameras in case they have footage of what happened in your accident.
Getting Evidence After the Car Crash
Some evidence from your car crash will take time to be processed or completed. Any police reports, EMS reports, or reconstructions of the crash will need time to be written and processed before you can request a copy from the responsible unit. For instance, you would request a crash report from the Farmington Police Department on their website. Other evidence, like a business’s surveillance footage, may take time to request and process. You may need to see a medical specialist to fully diagnose your injuries, so collecting that information to support your injury claim.
Why Is Evidence So Important in a NM Car Accident Claim?
After your car accident, you can file a lawsuit against the negligent party. They will have a chance to defend themselves, so evidence is the best way to ensure your side of the story is clear and protected. You are allowed to file lawsuits against negligent parties, the people or parties who share the blame for your crash. Under the law, negligence is when someone fails to follow the standard of care that any other reasonable person in the same situation would have used.
In car accidents, there could be many examples of negligence: speeding, distracted driving, failing to follow road signals, and more.
Can More than One Party Share Blame for a Crash?
There can be more than one person found negligent for your car crash in New Mexico, which is why evidence is critical. You have the burden of proof to show that these parties share responsibility for your injuries and damage to personal property. In some situations, there could be more than one negligent driver at fault for your injuries. Other likely negligent parties include car manufacturers, business owners, maintenance crews, and more.
FAQs About Car Accident Claims
What if the defendant’s evidence contradicts mine?
If the defendant’s evidence contradicts your own, you will need to work with your car crash attorney to devise a strategy to convince the insurance company that they held most of the fault. If your lawsuit goes to trial, you may need to convince the jury that the other driver holds the most blame for your injuries and damages. Thankfully, both sides of the lawsuit get a chance to review what evidence the other side has gathered during the discovery phase so their evidence shouldn’t surprise you.
What damages can I pursue in a car crash lawsuit?
If you have been injured in a car crash, you can sue for economic and non-economic damages. Economic damages are the losses you are paying for out of your own pocket, like medical expenses, repairing or replacing your car, or lost wages. Non-economic damages are abstract – it’s more challenging to put a price on them, but they can make up a significant portion of your crash claim. These losses can include pain and suffering you have experienced, mental anguish, loss of quality of life, and more. Your car crash attorney can examine your case and help you calculate your true losses.
Can I still sue if I’m partially at fault for an accident?
Yes, if you are partially responsible for your accident, you can sue the other driver for the resulting damages. However, under New Mexico’s comparative negligence law, your settlement can be adjusted by the amount of responsibility you share for your losses. That means if you are 10% for an accident that resulted in a $100,000 settlement, you will recover 90%, or $90,000 of that total. Finding the right evidence to prove fault accurately is the backbone to any personal injury lawsuit.
Can I use accident reconstruction to help determine fault in an accident?
Yes, you can use an accident reconstructionist to help determine fault in a car accident. Not every case will require the sophisticated expertise a reconstructionist offers, but if your injuries are severe enough and the accident unclear enough, your car crash attorney may advise you to hire an expert to explain how the accident really happened.
Will I have to go to court if I sue the at-fault driver?
In many cases, you may not have to go to court to sue the at-fault driver in New Mexico. Besides some mandatory appearances, your attorney may be the only one necessary to represent you at pre-trial hearings. Many car crash claims settle before a trial, so finding a lawyer who can leverage your evidence into a pre-trial lawsuit is essential to getting you relief as quickly as possible.
Why should I hire a personal injury attorney from Farmington?
You can file a lawsuit against a negligent driver after a car crash, but you stand a much better chance at getting compensation with the help of a personal injury attorney from Farmington, like Attorney Shellie Patscheck. Lawyers like Shellie understand how challenging going against an insurance company can be, and she knows the local legal system better than you might. Her experience can help you meet all necessary deadlines, track down any extra evidence, and build a case that supports why your lawsuit is justified.
And you might be worried about paying for an attorney while you’re covering medical bills and possibly missing work. But most personal injury lawyers who handle car crash lawsuits work on a contingency basis. That means you will not need to pay for their services until you win a settlement. Shellie understands how nervous or anxious the court system can make her clients feel, but she’s ready to support you every step of the way.
Contact a Farmington Car Accident Lawyer Now
When you’re hurt in a Farmington car crash, you need a dependable personal lawyer who knows how the system works. You’re trusting your future to a legal professional, so you should find one who truly cares about your predicament and understands that evidence makes all the difference in these cases. Attorney Shellie Patscheck has been serving the Farmington area since 2011. She grew up in San Juan County, so she knows who to call and how to help you best.
Call (505) 325-9898 or fill out our contact form to schedule your free consultation.