If you are injured in a car accident, your smartphone can be your best witness. Preserving the truth, the actual facts, can prevent guilty parties from escaping liability. It would be best if an uninterested bystander were to do this for you, so call a friend if you are unable to do it yourself. If no one else is available, recording any facts yourself is far better not having any preserved evidence at all.
Additionally, call a personal injury lawyer Bangor ME as soon as possible. Your lawyer will get a proper investigator on the scene as soon as possible, if appropriate. This can make or break a case.
Call the police
Every accident needs a police report, even if you think you are only a little sore at the scene. Your awareness of your injuries can change drastically as the shock of the accident wears off. Use your phone for what it is for. Call the police to come preserve information about the accident and the other driver.
Injuries
Obvious injuries should be photographed from every angle at the scene, if possible. Photographs in the hospital are fine as well. Photograph changes in the injury over time as well. Often, there is soreness but no visible injury. In that case, take pictures of the mechanism of injury, such as a smashed in dashboard, deployed airbags, etc.
Witnesses
For every witness or involved person, you or someone acting on your behalf should try to get their contact information and statements. Sometimes, this can only be recorded by taking notes in a text application on your phone.
Some people may use a recording app on their phone to record witness statements. This is great, but requires the other party’s consent in some states, such as California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Washington. Just ask, as the recording starts, “Do you mind if I record this?”
Accident scene
Photographs from an accident scene can speak volumes, but sometimes a video is better at conveying spatial relationships between vehicles, marks on the road, broken vehicle parts, etc. Videos also can be a great source of still photographs through screenshots taken later. If a police officer is interacting with another driver in a manner that suggests suspicion (such as the administration of field sobriety tests or the searching of the vehicle), do not interfere. However, a photograph or two from a respectful distance would be nice to have, to say the least.
Vehicle damage
Accident investigators will use objective evidence, such as vehicle damage, to reconstruct what happened and assign fault. Take as many pictures as possible of all vehicle damage on all vehicles both close up and at a distance. Include any damage to the inside of the car. Don’t forget temporary marks on the vehicle such as mud splashes or grass in tire treads. They are all there for a reason and will help tell your story.
Road characteristics
Marks on the road, such as scrapes, skid marks, and broken vehicle parts, should be photographed both up close and from a distance to put them in perspective. Other road characteristics should be photographed as well. Intersections, turns, hills, dips, and weather conditions can be very important in interpreting what happened just before and during an accident.
Location
Sometimes location can be an issue, especially in rural areas and on back roads. Your smart phone can pinpoint the location of the accident if you are at the scene use a map application on your phone. On an iPhone, for example, you can ask Siri, “show my location on a map.” Then take a screenshot of your location or have someone else take a photograph of your screen.
Thanks to our friends and contributors from David Bate Law Office for their insight into accidents and smartphones.
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