California is among the biggest states in the US. Because of its size, you expect it to have a big population, and out of this population, a significant percentage own vehicles. Also, California hosts many visitors worldwide who explore the tourist attractions or do business throughout the year. Because of these factors, heavy traffic is not uncommon on California highways, resulting in road accidents, such as multi-vehicle accidents.

A multi-vehicle accident happens when two or more vehicles crash. Like any other type of crash, a multi-vehicle accident could cause injuries and damages. To claim compensation, you have to do certain things like gathering information, talking to your lawyer, determining fault, and seeking treatment. In this article, read about these and other steps that happen after a multi-vehicle accident.

What a Multi-Vehicle Accident Involves

A multi-vehicle accident is a collision involving two or more vehicles. Also known as ‘pile-ups,’ multi-vehicle accidents could involve five or more cars. You are likely to find this type of accident on busy highways where several vehicles move at higher speeds. It is difficult for motorists driving at high speeds to break in good time when something suddenly obstructs them.  The impact of the first car to crash causes domino effects resulting in a series of collisions.

If your car is rear-ended, the force could make you rear-end another car, which in turn hits the car in front. Even if the drivers break in good time, the impact could make the cars skid or swerve into the oncoming traffic’s lanes. Pile-ups are among the most dangerous accidents, as the other motorists’ judgments cannot save you. For instance, where an oncoming vehicle is rear-ended and swerves into your lane, it’s almost impossible to tell if the driver can gain control of their vehicle.

What to Do After a Multi-Vehicle Accident

You want to be cautious of what you say after being involved in a multi-vehicle accident. Other motorists could twist your words and blame you for causing the accident.  Hold your horses until the police show up at the accident scene, then tell them what you know. As a rule of thumb, never admit fault when speaking to the authorities, and also don’t post the scene images on the web. Below are tips on what to do after the accident:

Check If You Have Sustained Injuries

After a multi-vehicle accident, the first thing you want to do is checking if you or your passenger(s) have sustained any injuries. If you are seriously hurt, do not attempt to move since that can worsen your condition. Secondly, call for emergency support to send an ambulance or seek immediate help from bystanders. When calling 911, tell the operator you need urgent medical assistance. Also, provide the operator with detailed information about your injuries, location, and the accident.

Turn On the Hazard Lights

Multi-vehicle accidents cause chain reactions making other approaching motorists not notice the scene. Help other drivers not to crash by switching on your car’s hazard lights. When your hazard lights are turned on, you signal other drivers to approach with caution so that they could slow down.

Consider a Medical Check-Up

”Piles-ups'' is likely to be fatal due to the multiple car impacts. The impacts elevate the chances of you being hurt in the crash. Undergoing a check-up from a qualified doctor is important since some hidden injuries can take days, weeks, or months before they are noticed. If you fail to undergo a check-up and notice an injury after some days, you risk having your claim denied because you lack a medical report.

Prioritize Safety

You want to prioritize safety by placing the road flares a few meters around your car and switch on hazard lights. These steps create awareness and alert other drivers about the accident, and slow down when approaching. Remain in your vehicle unless it is safe to alight. Note that there could be additional cars in the pile-up, and if you are in your vehicle, you are less likely to be harmed if those cars crash.

Secondary collisions are likely to start fires or explosions. Therefore, it is best to move to the sidewalk or edge of the road. Moreover, if your vehicle obstructs traffic and is safe to drive, move it to the roadside.

Call the Police

Call the police before deciding to leave the accident scene. It is crucial to write down the names and badge numbers of police officers who come to the scene. After the police write their report, ask them to provide you with a copy of it for future use when filing an insurance claim. If the police ask you questions, be truthful when answering. You want to provide the officers with vital information about what could have caused the accident. For example, you could have seen another driver using a mobile phone while driving or was driving under the influence of drugs. 

Information Gathering

If you are not seriously injured, you should obtain as much information as your health permits. You will have enlightenments to state in the accident report. Interact with your fellow victims and exchange fundamental information, including their contact information. Talk to anyone you believe could have witnessed the accident and note down their names and contact information.

Find out the insurance status of individuals and vehicles involved and their policy numbers. If any of the involved drivers is not the registered vehicle owner, you will want to get the registered owner's name. Note down the brand, complexion, and model of vehicles involved. The location of the accident is also an important aspect that you should note.

Be Keen on Your Words

Abstain from making statements to anybody regarding the accident and who is accountable or at fault. However, be honest when responding to police but don’t concede fault. Your insurance company adjuster will make judgment dwelling on the details you and the involved parties offer. The information will determine whether you deserve compensation. Do not speak to any other representative of your colleague’s insurance company.

Record Everything If Possible

Smartphone camera technology has evolved over the years. The current smartphone models come packed with quality cameras. If you own such a phone, it could be handy to record the accident scene and take high-resolution images of various details. Pictures can be of importance in your claim process with your insurer.

Take pictures of the scene from different angles showing the damages that occurred to your vehicle and property. Film anything that might be used to know how and why the incident happened. Take snapshots of evidence such as street signs, lights, skid marks on the road, and the position of the vehicles involved.  However, do not put up anything concerning the accident on social media platforms because this can put your claim in question.

Contact An Attorney

Looking for an attorney is among the most crucial things you should do after being involved in a multi-vehicle accident, especially if your injuries are not severe. Your loved ones or friends could look for an attorney on your behalf if you are seriously injured. Not only will your attorney represent you in court, but they also will gather evidence, meet your insurance agent, and protect the evidence.

You should worry less about paying your lawyer, and many of them work under a contingency fee arrangement. Thus, you bear no legal fees until the lawyer wins the case and you receive compensation for the harm and damages caused to you.

Contact Your Insurer

Most insurance companies have a notice requirement. Call your insurance company as soon as you are safe. Before contacting your insurance company, contact a competent lawyer for a consultation. With proper guidance, speak to your insurance company’s representative. The representative will guide you on what you need to file your claim and expectations throughout the claim process.

Nonetheless, don’t give any statement to your insurance company as to what happened and how the incident took place without discussing it with an attorney. An insurance adjuster will always side with the insurance company and not you. Always involve your attorney for guidance in making crucial decisions. Refuse to accept a settlement or to sign any documents without your attorney’s consent.

Rushing to accept compensation without proper analysis can limit the money you can claim. For example, receiving compensation and then a hidden injury emerges afterward. Your insurance company can refuse to pay in such situations. The company's adjuster is entitled to saving companies money which he does by paying you the least amount possible.

Establishing Fault in a Multi-Vehicle Accident

It can be difficult trying to decipher the accident’s cause. If one of the parties admits fault, determining fault becomes easy. But in cases where nobody agrees he/she is at fault, a jury comes in to weigh and apportion fault. Circumstances such as a sudden wind burst powerful enough to cause an accident is natural and an unavoidable cause. They are referred to as ”acts of God,” and nobody can be considered at fault if it happens to be the accident cause.

Normally, the at-fault motorist is one who did not exercise their duty of care. The motorist could have been drunk driving, driving recklessly, over speeding, or texting while driving. Even though the accident cause seems obvious, the authorities and insurance must investigate to know the truth. They could also hire accident reconstruction experts to determine the accident cause before approving your claim.

It is not uncommon for motorists to blame each other after a multi-vehicle accident. Due to this, you are left to depend on the evidence you find at the scene of the accident. Also, witnesses’ accounts could differ in a multi-vehicle accident, especially if the drivers swerved out of their lanes unintentionally.

Following are steps to do when establishing fault in a multi-vehicle accident:

  1. Record Several Witnesses Accounts

You cannot underestimate the power of witnesses’ accounts when establishing fault after a road crash. Witnesses act as the initial observers of what transpired; hence, their accounts are considered crucial. Even if some witnesses give a wrong account, experts can separate the wheat from the chaff and know the correct accounts. However, many witnesses are unbiased, unlike fellow motorists who want to blame each other and serve their interests.

You want to interview several witnesses to gather as much information as you can. Request if you could have their contact information and ask for consent if you want to record them as they speak. The recordings could be used to strengthen your evidence in addition to the witnesses’ testimonies.

  1. Present the Evidence You Collect at the Accident Scene

After gathering all the information explained in the article, engage your lawyer to analyze and build a defense if you are blamed or a case if you want to file a claim. In California, you bear the burden of proving that you deserve to be compensated and that another motorist is at fault.

  1. Prove That The Alleged At-fault Motorist Acted With Negligence

Negligence is a common term using personal injury law. A motorist is considered negligent when they fail to offer care to another motorist, for example, right of way. Legal experts term the care as ‘duty of care.’ A driver is said to be at fault if they neglect their duty of care. The court could order them to compensate you if you can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that they acted with negligence.

You could use various means to prove negligence, including police reports, dashcam footage, or even witnesses’ accounts. Factors that could show negligence are:

  • Over speeding
  • Driving erratically
  • Tailgating
  1. Prove that you sustain injuries and suffered damages in the accident

Injuries and damages are inevitable in a multi-vehicle accident. The law requires you to prove that you sustained injuries in the said accident before awarding you damages. You want to present medical reports explicitly stating that the multi-vehicle accident you were involved in caused your injuries. Provide medical bills, receipts to show medical expenses, and ask the doctor to appear in court as one of your witnesses. These documents could be used to prove pain and suffering and loss of consortium.

  1. Request the Police’s Report

As mentioned above, you should contact the police after the accident. When the law enforcers arrive at the scene, they could also interview you, the other accident victims, and bystanders before writing a report. You want to request the police to give you a copy of the report. You could use the report in court to show that another driver was at fault. Another reason you want to have a copy of the report is that the police could overlook crucial details or write a report that could incriminate you. If the report suggests that you are at fault, your insurer could deny you compensation, and the judge could convict you.

  1. Involve Your Attorney

Always involve your lawyer when determining fault after a road accident. Your attorney is trained to handle such cases, and the odds are that they have many years of experience. Your injuries could also not allow you to chase down insurers. A personal injury attorney dedicates his time interviewing witnesses, working with various experts, looking for recordings of surveillance cameras that could have captured the scene.

The insurer aims at paying out the least compensation possible. But, your attorney wants you to receive the compensation you deserve. You need a lawyer since the insurer also hires a lawyer to represent them. Fighting a competent lawyer alone could end with you receiving zero compensation. An attorney goes above and beyond to do his work, including hiring a private investigator.

Together with your lawyer, the investigator takes photos of the accident scene, measures skid marks, checks the road’s status and road signs nearby, and reconstructs the impact of vehicles involved in the accident. Also, your lawyer could investigate if the traffic offices apprehended any motorists for crimes like:

  • Drunk driving
  • Possession of drugs in the car
  • Reckless driving
  • Driving with a suspended/ without a license

Multi-vehicle accidents are hard to solve and determine the at-fault party due to the involvement of several cars.

Find a Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney Near Me

Due to the complicated multi-vehicle accident’s nature, you must take the steps above after the accident. These include taking pictures of the accident scene, talking to witnesses, calling the police, seeking treatment, contacting your lawyer, and many more explained in the article. By taking the necessary steps, you stand a better chance of determining fault and receiving compensation for injuries or damages caused to you.

While chasing your compensation, you need an experienced lawyer’s help to navigate the complex accident nature and California justice system. When the witnesses give a flawed account, the police write a biased report, and the insurer twists your words. At  The LA Personal Injury Law Firm, we won't rest until all stones are turned.

We work around the clock to ensure our clients receive the compensation they deserve. If you are involved in a multi-vehicle accident in Los Angeles, CA, call our attorneys, and they will jump into action fast. Call us today at 310-935-0089 for a cost-free consultation.