After an Injury: 3 Steps to Help Your Personal Injury Claim

The days and weeks after you first sustain a personal injury can be confusing and stressful: In addition to needing medical treatment for your injuries, you may be wondering what to do next and what your legal options are if you were injured due to someone else’s negligent behavior.

In order to help injury victims, we’ve compiled a list of useful steps that people can follow in the aftermath of a personal injury. These simple and straightforward tips can prove critical in the event that you decide to file a personal injury claim and seek compensation for damages and losses that resulted from another person’s negligence.

Remember that all of these tips are secondary to going to the doctor if you need medical attention; seeking treatment for any injuries is your top priority. If you are injured and don’t go to the doctor, you do not have a personal injury claim.

1. Collect evidence and take notes about your experiences.In the field of personal injury law, the old saying holds true: “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Photos are some of the most helpful and compelling pieces of evidence you can gather, so try to take pictures of your injuries, conditions at the scene where you were hurt, and any other details that seem relevant.In addition to taking photos, you should also begin to gather detailed notes about what you experience after your injury; this can include observations about your mental and emotional state as well as records of medical expenses, missed work, lost wages, and other financial impacts or changes to your lifestyle. This evidence can help to ensure that any compensation you receive is comprehensive and address all of the various consequences of your injury.
2. Record conversations with witnesses and take down their contact information. Eyewitness accounts are notorious for their ability to change over time as memories of an event fade. If a witness to your injury describes what they saw, take notes about what they say (or record it, if possible) — it could help to jog their memory if they later forget what they told you. It’s also a good idea to take down contact information from witnesses and use it to get in touch with them at least once, just to make sure the information they provided is accurate.
3. Contact an experienced personal injury attorney. Filing a personal injury claim can be a time-consuming and complicated process. An attorney with a background in personal injury practice will know the ins and outs of the legal process surrounding a claim, and having them advocate on your behalf will allow you to focus on your recovery and getting well.In addition, an attorney can conduct their own expert investigation of the circumstances surrounding your injury using professional resources and past case experience, which can allow them to spot critical details you may have missed — even if you followed the steps listed above with great care. Since there are so many factors that can influence the outcome of a personal injury case, it’s extremely difficult for an untrained person to take everything into account. Hiring an attorney can help you feel confident and improve your odds of making a successful recovery.

Although seeking medical treatment after an injury should be your first priority, remember that personal injury claims have an expiration date: their statute of limitations. In North Carolina, you only have three years from the date of your injury to go to civil court and file a lawsuit, and the process that leads up to that filing can take time in itself. In order to avoid running out of time and losing any chance at receiving compensation for your injuries, it’s important to contact an attorney as soon as you can.