What to do if You are a Passenger in a Car Accident

Any person who is a passenger in a vehicle accident should be aware that they can recover compensation if they sustain injuries. However, recovering compensation can seem confusing, particularly when it comes to understanding which insurance carrier to turn to. Here, we want to discuss the steps you can take if you have been a passenger in a vehicle accident and sustained an injury.

Passengers Can Secure Compensation

The good news is that passengers should be able to recover compensation in the aftermath of a vehicle accident that causes them harm. The vast majority of passenger injury claims are resolved through settlements with insurance carriers, but there is often more than one insurance carrier involved. For example, the vehicle the passenger was in will likely have an insurance policy attached, as will the other vehicle(s) involved in the collision.

Which insurance carrier pays for the passenger’s injuries?

Well, just like any other type of vehicle accident, liability for the incident will need to be determined. There will be an investigation into the crash to figure out which driver caused the incident, and the at-fault driver’s insurance carrier will be responsible for paying the passenger’s injury expenses. If there was shared fault for the collision, then more than one insurance carrier may be responsible for paying the passenger’s injury expenses, and the apportionment of compensation will be done using the pure comparative negligence system in place in California.

Steps to Take as a Passenger in a Car Accident

There are various steps that passengers need to take to ensure that they recover the compensation they are entitled to after an accident occurs.

  1. Medical care. As a passenger in a vehicle accident, it is crucial to seek medical treatment immediately after an incident. Even if you do not feel much pain after the incident, the signs and symptoms of some injuries do not appear right away. Passengers need to seek medical care no matter what.
  2. Reporting the incident. The incident needs to be reported not only to the police, but also your own personal auto insurance carrier. You need to let your insurance carrier know what happened, the names and contact information of other drivers involved, and that you were seeking medical treatment for your injuries.
  3. Gathering evidence. If you are able to do so at the scene of a crash, you can use your cell phone or another type of camera to take photographs of everything that you see. Additionally, if there are any eyewitnesses, you need to get their names and contact information written down so they can give their statements to your insurance carrier.
  4. Calling an attorney. You should speak to a skilled car accident lawyer as soon as possible. You need to have an advocate by your side who can make sure that you are treated fairly throughout this process so you can recover the compensation you need.
  5. Continuing medical treatment. Finally, you should continue all medical treatment until you have fully recovered from your injuries. If you discontinue care before you make a full recovery, the insurance carrier could use this against you and deny or delay the claim.