Ambulances are racing across the United States. 4.8 million Americans experienced injuries from car accidents in 2020 alone. That’s roughly one injury every six seconds.

An accident can send you to the hospital, cause you to miss work, and force you to pay for costly treatments. Yet you’re not helpless after an accident. You can work with an accident lawyer to reclaim your money, as long as you know what to do.

What documents should you give your attorney? How can you establish lost wages and vehicle damage? Whose contact information should you give to your lawyer?

Answer these questions and you can team up with the best accident lawyer in no time. Here is your quick guide.

Medical Paperwork

Your medical records may be the most important documents in your accident case. They establish what your injuries were like immediately after the accident. They also indicate what treatment you need and how much money you spent after the collision.

If you bought equipment like a wheelchair or crutches, you can give the receipt to your lawyer. You should attach a statement from yourself or your doctor explaining what you use the equipment for.

Keep everything related to your medical treatments. If you received an ambulance ride to the hospital, you should keep the contact information of the ambulance service. You should also mention to your accident injury lawyer who the first responders were.

If you have a pre-existing condition that got worse after your accident, you may be able to claim money based on it. You should have a note from your doctor indicating that your symptoms got worse as a direct result of the crash.

Accident and Insurance Documents

Your accident report is essential. Your accident attorney may not be able to bring it up in trial, but it provides details about the road conditions and state of your vehicle. It also mentions who the other people involved were, allowing your lawyer to track them down.

Collect all information about your medical insurance. Your lawyer should understand what the terms of your insurance are and whether you have received all the money you deserve. If you didn’t, your lawyer can contact your insurance company.

If you received letters or emails from your insurer about your accident, you should give them to your lawyer. These documents establish how much money you have received for your treatments and how much more money you need.

Eyewitness Information

Your accident attorneys should have the contact information of the other drivers and passengers involved in your accident. This helps them during discovery and lets them prepare for cross-examination. If you exchanged insurance details with the other drivers, you should give their insurance information to your lawyer.

Eyewitnesses include people who saw you or the other drivers before the accident. They can give information at trial about whether the other driver was driving recklessly. They can also talk about the road and weather conditions and vouch for where you were during the accident.

Give their information to your lawyer. Note what you think they saw and how they may help you with your case. You don’t have to contact the witnesses yourself, especially if you think they might help the defendant.

Your Personal Account

Writing a personal account will help you remember key details. It also lets your personal injury lawyer develop a timeline of events they can bring up in trial.

Write down your personal account of the events as soon as possible. If you don’t like writing, you can make a video or audio recording of your observations. Make sure to leave a timestamp for your recording to show it was done shortly after the accident.

Be precise and describe anything that might be relevant to your case. Write about the road and weather conditions, what other drivers were doing, and where witnesses were standing. Your lawyer is bound by attorney-client confidentiality, so you can say whatever you want in your account.

Income Paperwork

You can recover lost wages in addition to the money you spent on treatment and equipment. You will need to hand over your W-2 forms or your pay stubs. You can also give a statement about your bank holdings.

Get a document from human resources or your boss about how many days of work you missed. You can also get a statement from them if you returned to work but completed fewer responsibilities because of your injuries.

Vehicle Information

Photographs of your vehicle are essential pieces of evidence. Take photographs of your car as soon as possible and point out areas of damage.

Give these images to your lawyer alongside any relevant pieces of paperwork. Vehicle insurance and repair forms can corroborate the photographs and give details about how much you spent on fixing your car.

You should get a copy of your automobile insurance policy. In particular, you should have the declarations or coverage certificate page, which lays out what type of coverage you have and what your policy limits are.

What Your Accident Lawyer Needs

Your accident lawyer needs many papers to build your case. Your medical and insurance documents are absolutely essential. Your lawyer needs to know what injuries you had, including psychological ones.

They should also know who witnessed the accident and what they saw. Be clear with them about your experience and thoughts about the accident. They should know how much money you lost and whether your vehicle was damaged as well.

Don’t wait for a lawyer to come to you. Savin Bursk Law serves the Los Angeles area. Contact us today.