In personal injury lawsuits, the victim is the one that needs to prove the fault of the guilty party. In order to do this, you need very strong evidence.
Following the car accident, when the event was not your fault, you are allowed to file a personal injury claim. It is highly recommended you do this with the help of a personal injury attorney in Washington, DC. However, the attorney will be able to build a much better case for you when you provide some important documents. Show this to your lawyer and you will get much better results.
Police Records And Police Reports
A report will be created by the police when it arrives at the scene of the accident. It is possible that it includes a preliminary ruling in which a party at fault is identified. As more evidence will be found, the decision can be overturned or modified. However, even so, it is a great way to establish fault and your case will have leverage in future settlement talks.
Citations And Tickets
There are cases in which at least one of the drivers involved receives traffic tickets. It is possible when a driver was identified to have been speeding, texting, driving under the influence, or in a completely unsafe manner.
The traffic tickets are useful and can be utilized by your personal injury attorney in the claim or in the negotiation phase.
Copies Of The Insurance Policy
You surely have an insurance policy and it will be analyzed during the claim. When the accident happened outside of the home state, the policy remains valid. Unfortunately, if the policy does not meet state standards or is expired, it will be utilized against your claim. The attorney needs to be aware of such a possibility.
Statements
You will give a statement to the police about what happened. The other drivers involved will do exactly the same. Also, you might have given statements to the insurance company, just like everyone else. In addition, witnesses might be found and they will also give statements.
If you have such statements, take them to your personal injury attorney as soon as you can. This will always be very important.
Medical Records
Make sure to keep all the medical bills that document your injuries and treatments. Every single receipt should be kept for all medical expenses. This is especially the case when there were things that you paid out of your own pockets, like pain killers, crutches, or ankle braces.
The medical records are vital for attorneys. They show the fact that you needed treatment following the car accident and the findings of the doctors. Also, they can show any possible underlying medical issue, which will be analyzed by insurance companies.
Final Thoughts
Your car accident attorney will do wonders when it comes to maximizing the settlement you receive. It is very important that you cooperate and that you help the lawyer as much as you can. These documents will be particularly helpful but literally, anything related to the car accident can be of great value.