As you ride your bike, safety is vital. However, regardless of how safe you feel, there is always the possibility you will be involved in some sort of accident. This is because of the fact that there are so many more cars than bicycles on the road and whenever you are hit, you are the one that suffers the most damage.
What you do right after the accident is important. According to experienced bicycle accident lawyers Detroit, here are the steps you always need to take.
Call The Police
If someone else calls the police, you have to wait for it to arrive. In fact, you are legally obligated to do this since we are talking about an accident. Do so even if you think you were not injured because some injuries only become visible some time after the collision. After leaving the scene, it becomes impossible to find who hit you.
Do Not Negotiate With The Other Party
In order to get rid of problems fast, you are tempted to negotiate. Do not do so even if blame is accepted. This is because you do not really know how injured you are and how much bike damage will cost you. Also, at a later point in time, the driver might be dishonest and might deny the incident even happened.
Get Information From The Driver
You need to exchange information. This includes address, name, license number, car make, license plate number, phone number, and even insurance policy number since it is relevant. Since you are exchanging information, see if there are some witnesses present. If so, get contact details from them.
Start Documenting Events
As soon as possible after the accident, you need to start writing down and documenting what happened since you might end up missing or forgetting really important things. You can draw diagrams and maps and there is nothing wrong with taking photographs.
When you document events, make sure to include signs, traffic lights, and streets. To take photos, use your cell phone since it is more than enough. Make sure to photograph damages and injuries.
Seek Medical Attention
You might think that your injuries are not serious. Even so, you need to go to a doctor as soon as possible. This is important because of several reasons. For starters, you cannot guess how injured you really are. Then, the doctor will give you written evaluations that will then be useful in the claim. If possible, also have the doctor take photographs of injuries and make sure symptoms will be recorded in the following days.
Preserve All Evidence
It might seem counterintuitive but you want to keep all damaged clothing. Also, you should not wash your clothes. Then, damaged bike parts have to be stored and you should not repair the bicycle.
In the event that it is absolutely necessary to fix your bike, like when using it for work, you want to first take photographs. Then, a written document is necessary to have proof of the damages. When you fix the bike and you do not document anything, you actively throw away any proof that something happened.