First Steps to Take After a Louisville Car Accident

Being involved in a car accident can be a traumatizing experience, and legal issues are probably the last thing on your mind following a car accident. An experienced Louisville car accident attorney can help.

If you have been injured in a Louisville car accident, you may be entitled to monetary compensation. An attorney will be able to review all of the facts and circumstances of your case with you and can help to simplify and streamline the legal process. There are some important first steps to take after sustaining injuries in a Louisville car accident.

Getting Same Day Treatment

Injured victims of Louisville car accidents should immediately seek same-day treatment at a local hospital emergency room or urgent care facility. This is true even when no symptoms are present. Same-day treatment is necessary for the following reasons:

• Symptoms often do not manifest themselves until well after the accident – and it is better to be safe than sorry
• Failing to seek same-day emergency medical treatment sends a message to insurance adjusters that an accident victim was not all that seriously injured and/or was not making medical treatment a top priority

It is also important that car accident victims follow through with the emergency room doctor’s treatment recommendations. This may include one or more of the following:

• Following up with a primary care physician or specialist for treatment
• Beginning a physical therapy regimen
• Seeking treatment at an independent healthcare facility

Seeking Further Medical Attention for Injuries

Following a same-day hospital emergency room or urgent care visit, it is important to immediately start treating with a health care provider for injuries sustained in the accident. Large gaps in treatment or delays in treatment are red flags for insurance adjusters.

Rightly or wrongly, gaps in medical treatment or physical therapy send a signal to the insurance company that car accident victims are not injured as severely as they claim to be.

While treating with healthcare providers after the accident, it is also important to be extremely accurate and concise about symptoms and pain levels. Although it might be tempting to exaggerate symptoms, nothing can be more damaging to the value of a Louisville car accident case.

Legal Representation

An experienced Louisville car accident attorney can take a great deal of stress away from a car accident victim. As such, it is important that you contact an attorney soon after a vehicle accident. A personal injury lawyer will be able to do the following – all while allowing the accident victim time to treat for injuries and get better:

• Recommend further treatment options
• Obtain all medical records and bills from hospitals, treating physicians, and physical therapy facilities
• Obtain information from insurance companies about their available policy limits
• Submit a settlement demand to the insurance company
• Negotiate with insurance adjusters to obtain a fair settlement of the personal injury case
• File a lawsuit and litigate the case in the court system, if necessary

How a Car Accident Attorney Can Help

Insurance companies, generally, are not on the side of accident victims. Insurance companies, more than anything else, are businesses, and their main goal is to keep as much of their money in-house as possible, in order to distribute this money to their shareholders.

By taking the initial steps outlined above following an accident, you will be on the right track to maximizing the value of your case. You should feel free to contact experienced Louisville car accident lawyers at any time, via telephone or email, for an initial consultation.