After a car accident, it can be difficult to keep your wits about you and take proactive steps to protect your legal rights. However, accident scenes will be quickly cleaned up, so valuable evidence could go missing or get destroyed if you don’t document the scene before you ever have a chance to consult a San Antonio truck accident lawyer.
The Role of Evidence in Texas Car Accident Cases
Texas is an at-fault state for car accidents. This means the driver found at fault for the accident is responsible for paying for the victim’s damages. Before you can recover any financial compensation, you must be able to show that the other driver caused the collision. Evidence is the foundation of your claim and is critical when you and the other driver have differing accounts of how the accident happened.
Evidence from a car accident can help prove liability and establish proof of your losses. It can also help show the various factors that contributed to the accident, which could implicate someone other than the other driver. Evidence may help establish the events leading up to the accident and identify all responsible parties.
Because Texas uses a modified comparative fault system, if you are found partially responsible for the accident, your damages can be reduced by your degree of fault (or eliminated altogether if you are found to be more than 50% at fault for the accident). Just as evidence may help prove the other driver was at fault, it may help establish that you were not.
If your car accident case is in dispute, having objective evidence on your side can help insurance adjusters and courts make informed decisions about liability and compensation.
Types of Evidence to Collect After a Texas Car Accident
The evidence you should gather after a Texas car accident will depend on the particular circumstances. However, some evidence that may help support your claim could include:
- Photos or videos of the accident: It’s usually a good idea to take pictures at the scene of an accident. This could include images or videos of road signs, traffic signals, cross streets, debris in the roadway, skid marks, road and weather conditions, damage to all vehicles involved in the accident, and other property damage. These images or videos may help create a visual representation of the accident, making it easier to understand the factors involved in the crash.
- Physical evidence: Your car accident lawyer may advise you not to take your vehicle in for repair until after they have had a chance to analyze it. The location and intensity of damage can help establish how the collision occurred. If you do take it in for repairs, keep the report the collision shop prepares that details the extent of the damage to your vehicle.
- Digital evidence: Your car may be equipped with an event data recorder that could reveal your speed, braking patterns, and location immediately before the crash. You could also have a dashcam. Preserving this evidence may be critical to the outcome of your case.
- Witness statements: Witness statements can be powerful evidence because they come from objective parties that do not have any stake in the outcome of your claim. Your San Antonio injury lawyer can follow up with witnesses if you or law enforcement got their names and contact information.
- Accident reports: Call the police after a car accident so they can prepare an official accident report that provides critical details about the accident.
- Medical records: Keep all medical records associated with the car accident to help prove the full extent of your injuries.
Contact an Experienced Car Accident Lawyer for Help Collecting Evidence
George Salinas Injury Lawyers can help build your San Antonio car accident claim. Contact us for a free case review.