You may be entitled to financial compensation after your bus crash injury. That said, your actions in the days and weeks following the crash could tremendously impact your chances of success. A single mistake could destroy your ability to recover compensation for your injuries.
When you rely on the experience of local legal counsel, you are more likely to get the fair outcome you deserve. A bus crash attorney from our firm could work with you to ensure you understand all the mistakes to avoid after an Albuquerque bus accident.
Following a motor vehicle accident, it is natural to feel the need to speak to the other driver, whether to check on their condition or ask why they caused the crash. It is best to keep interaction to a minimum because anything said to the other party—including genuine concern over their health—could ultimately be brought up in court and misconstrued as an admission of guilt.
It is important to remember that some interaction may be necessary, as the law requires drivers to share insurance information. During this exchange, the best way to avoid a common mistake following a bus accident in Albuquerque is to keep any discussion with the other driver as short as possible.
Avoid discussing the crash on social media. While keeping your family members updated is understandable, publicly sharing this information allows the insurance company to parse each post, looking for inconsistent statements or evidence of fraud.
Different types of posts could cause problems for you. Discussing how the accident happened could conflict with previous statements and result in credibility issues. Insurance investigators could even draw attention to images or videos of you performing activities, suggesting that you have overstated your injury. To avoid such errors after an Albuquerque bus accident, staying away from social media until the case is over is a good idea.
Insurance adjusters for the bus company are likely to reach out after the crash, often on the same day it occurs. They may imply that giving a recorded statement is required under the law, but you should avoid making this mistake, as any statements could be damaging should your Albuquerque bus accident case ever go to trial.
Just like with insurance companies, attorneys for the bus companies are also likely to reach out after an accident. Avoid dealing with them directly after an Albuquerque bus crash because it could be a tremendous mistake. They could ask you to sign a document without explaining what it means, which could be a written statement that does not match the facts of the crash or even a waiver of certain rights. Never sign anything without talking to a lawyer first.
Most bus accident injury cases settle, but that does not mean you should consider every offer. The first offer is usually not the best, and many carriers aggressively pursue unreasonably low settlement offers. An experienced attorney could advise you of your options so you do not make a costly error after your bus accident in Albuquerque.
One of the biggest mistakes to avoid after an Albuquerque bus accident is going through the personal injury claim process without help. An attorney could assist with each phase of your case, from investigating the accident to negotiating with insurance companies. Reach out today to learn how one of our experienced local attorneys at Duran & McDonald could help you get the justice you deserve.
