Posted in Personal Injury on August 23, 2021
Anytime a person sustains an injury caused by the careless or negligent actions of another individual or entity, they should be able to recover compensation for their losses. However, securing compensation can be challenging, particularly when going up against aggressive insurance carriers or at-fault parties. In order to prove liability in these cases, there must be sufficient evidence. Depending on the type of accident, for example a car accident vs. worker’s compensation accident, different evidence will be needed. Here, our Long Beach personal injury lawyers want to look at the most common types of evidence used in a personal injury case to prove fault and help victims recover total compensation for their losses.
Evidence Gathered Right After the Incident
The most important thing for any person to do after sustaining an injury is to seek medical care. However, if the situation is not an immediate emergency, and if the scene is relatively safe, it may be possible to gather various types of evidence that could be useful when it comes to an insurance settlement or personal injury lawsuit. Some of the main types of evidence that can be gathered at the scene of an injury include the following:
- Photographs taken using a smartphone or another device of everything present, including property damage, debris, injuries, vehicle license plates, traffic and weather conditions, and more. It is important to take photographs from various angles and different distances so that anybody looking at the photos can get a good idea about how the scene actually looked.
- The names and contact information of eyewitnesses. Any eyewitness who saw what happened could provide a statement to the insurance carriers or a personal injury jury, but if you do not get their names right away, there is a good chance you will never find these people again.
Evidence Gathered in the Days or Weeks Following the Incident
In the days and weeks that follow an injury, various parties will conduct investigations and continue gathering evidence. This will include insurance carriers, attorneys for the injury victim and the defendant, and maybe even law enforcement officials depending on the situation. Some of the types of evidence that can help an injury victim’s case that will be gathered after the incident occurs include the following:
- The police or accident report. Regardless of the type of injury, there will likely be some report made by the parties involved. For vehicle accidents, this will be a police report. For premises liability incidents, most property owners have some type of reporting system.
- Possible video surveillance from nearby cameras. If there were any cameras on nearby homes or businesses or inside the location where the injury occurred, this footage could be invaluable for an injury case.
- Eyewitness statements will be gathered in the days and weeks that follow. Additionally, if any other witnesses to the incident are identified at a later date, an attorney can work to find these individuals and get their statements.
- Medical evidence is important. It is crucial for injury victims to keep all documentation of medical care they receive in the aftermath of sustaining an injury.
- If there is any physical evidence that you have related to the incident, you need to preserve it. This can include clothing damaged as a result of the injury or any other type of damage to property, such as a bicycle, a scooter, or your vehicle. Do not make repairs, and do not throw anything away until the damage is thoroughly documented and you are given the green light to do so.
An attorney specializing in personal injury law in California can help you gather all of this evidence. Your attorney will also handle all communication and negotiation with other parties to help ensure you recover maximum compensation.