ESPANOL
Many ways to protect your rights after a bicycle accident in Georgia are available to you. If you suffered injuries after a car struck you while cycling, you must protect your rights. A successful personal injury case could hinge on whether you take all of the necessary steps to strengthen your case following a collision.
If you have never pursued a personal injury case before, it is understandable if you are unsure where to start. Civil cases are complex, and the driver responsible for your accident could have the guidance of legal counsel. You have the right to even the odds by working with a Georgia personal injury lawyer.
Report the Accident to Georgia Police to Secure an Accident Report
One of the most important steps you can take to protect your rights after a bicycle accident is notifying law enforcement of the collision. Any time a person is injured in a collision with a motor vehicle, the police must respond to the scene.
Reporting the accident to the police could protect your rights in many ways. Most importantly, it could result in a police report that could be invaluable to your attorney as they prepare your personal injury case.
Avoid Any Discussion of Your Accident and Resulting Admissions of Fault
A major pitfall related to personal injury cases involves discussing the details of your bicycle accident. While discussing your accident with the police is unavoidable, you must limit your discussions with other parties about your accident. This is especially important when it comes to the driver that struck you.
Discussing the details of your accident with the other party is risky, given that they could hold anything you say against you during legal proceedings. Apologizing for the accident or offering to pay for vehicle repairs could be considered an admission of fault in the accident.
Limit Your Use of Social Media to Thwart the Insurance Companies
Limiting your discussion of the accident or your injuries goes beyond the scene of the crash site. One of the most important places to avoid discussing your accident at all is social media. Any social media activity could work against your personal injury case.
Insurance adjusters understand social media. They frequently monitor injury victims’ accounts after an accident, hoping to turn up evidence to use against them. The insurer could use even offhand comments about feeling better or pictures of you participating in a physical activity against you.
The best policy is to avoid social media entirely while pursuing a personal injury case. Anything you post could be taken out of context, even when you are not discussing the accident directly. Limiting the use of social media until your case is resolved could help you protect your rights.
Avoid Unnecessary Delays to Protect Your Chance at Compensation
Delaying your personal injury case is another way that you could jeopardize your legal rights and chance to recover bicycle accident damages. Your attorney has the important job of developing evidence that supports your case. The longer you wait to move forward, the more difficult that job becomes.
The physical evidence involved in a car accident could quickly become lost. Security or traffic cameras that caught the accident as it happened could be erased over time, eliminating the strongest evidence available to you.
Waiting to pursue your personal injury case could also limit the effectiveness of any witness testimony. Memories fade over time, and the witnesses to your accident could forget important details if you wait too long to ask about them.
Take Photographs of the Aftermath to Support Your Claim
Photographic evidence could work in your favor in more than one way. For example, taking photos of the accident scene could strengthen your personal injury case.
These photos could give a jury or the insurance company insight into what the crash site looked like. Your opportunity to take these photos is limited, as the scene of the collision will quickly disappear forever.
You could also benefit from taking photographs of your injuries when possible. This evidence could help you document the extent of your injuries and the process of your recovery. They could also help the jury understand the extent of your injuries and the physical pain that came with it.
Speak to Your Car Accident Attorney About the Bicycle Crash
The most important thing you can do to protect your rights after a bicycle accident in Georgia is to speak with an attorney. Your attorney could understand the best ways to protect your rights following a collision, and they could advise you on the right steps to take.
If you were injured in a bicycle accident, there is no time to delay. George Sink, P.A. Injury Lawyers could help you hold the driver that caused your bicycle accident accountable. Call (888) 612-7001 right away for your free consultation or look at our website for past client testimonials.