What To Do Immediately After An Injury

1. Preserve Evidence

• In fall cases this means cell phone photos of whatever caused you to fall and reporting the fall to the business entity.
• In traffic collision cases, if it is a serious injury, the police will investigate and as a practical matter they will be the only investigators on the scene. A lawyer can hire an expert to dispute or review or supplement police report findings later, sometimes by examining the vehicles which had been in the wreck after they have been towed away. A LAWYER WHO SAYS THEY ARE SENDING OUT AN ON SCENE INVESTIGATOR IS REALLY SENDING OUT SOMEONE TO TRY AND MAKE YOU SIGN A RETAINER AGREEMENT ON THE SPOT.

2. Document Your Medical Injury.

• If you have Medicare, Medicaid or health insurance with a major insurer such as United Health, it is ok to go to the emergency room if you feel it is necessary. (Medicare, Medicaid and major insurers get big hospital discounts. Minor insurers do not.)
• If you lack health insurance or have a minor Obama Care insurer, and you go to the emergency room, the hospital may end up with most of your settlement
• Regardless of coverage, don’t take an ambulance to the emergency room unless it would be dangerous not to. Nobody gets a significant discount off an ambulance bill and just an ambulance ride to a local ER can run $1300.
• Whether or not you go to the Emergency Room you need to follow up with an office visit to a doctor with a couple of days of the injury if not sooner, if you are hurt. Most doctors think inflammation peaks 24-48 hours after the injury. So, if you don’t seek medical care soon after the injury, the defense will try and make it look like you weren’t hurt.