The minutes and hours following a motor-vehicle collision are often chaotic, painful, and disorienting. The decisions you make in that window, however, can have an outsized effect on your ability to recover compensation months later. The purpose of this guide is to give you a calm, sequential set of steps that protects both your health and your legal position.

Families often ask me whether the actions at the scene really matter when liability seems obvious. The answer is yes — because what seems obvious to you will be disputed in writing by an adjuster within days.

Step 1: Check for Injuries and Call 911

Your first priority is safety. Check yourself, your passengers, and if possible the occupants of the other vehicle. Call 911 without delay, even if injuries appear minor. The responding officer will produce an official crash report — a contemporaneous document that is almost always decisive in later litigation.

Step 2: Document the Scene

If you are physically able, take photographs from multiple angles before anything is moved. Good scene documentation typically includes:

• All vehicles involved, from all four sides, including license plates.
• Wide-angle shots showing the position of each vehicle on the roadway.
• Skid marks, debris, fluid trails, and resting positions.
• Traffic signals, signs, lane markings, and sight-line obstructions.
• Weather and road-surface conditions.
• Any visible injuries to yourself or passengers.

Step 3: Exchange Information

Collect the other driver's full name, phone number, address, driver's license number, license plate, vehicle make and model, and — critically — their insurance carrier and policy number. Independent witnesses are often the most valuable asset in a disputed-liability case; get their names and numbers before they leave.

Step 4: Seek Medical Attention — Even If You Feel Fine

Visit an emergency room or urgent-care clinic the same day, even if you feel uninjured. Several categories of serious injury do not present symptoms at the scene:

1. Mild traumatic brain injury and concussion.
2. Internal bleeding from seatbelt or airbag compression.
3. Cervical and lumbar soft-tissue injuries, which often peak 24–72 hours later.
4. Psychological injuries, including acute stress reactions.

A same-day clinical record linking symptoms to the collision is often the difference between a fully compensated claim and a disputed one.

What the medical record actually shows is the single most persuasive document in any auto case — which is why we insist on same-day evaluation, even in minor crashes.

— Michael A. Cavaliere

Step 5: Do NOT Give Recorded Statements

Within 24 to 72 hours, an insurance adjuster — usually the at-fault driver's — will call. They will sound sympathetic and concerned. Their purpose is to obtain a recorded statement that can be used to minimize or deny your claim. Politely decline to provide a recorded statement until you have spoken with counsel. You are under no legal obligation to do so.

Step 6: Preserve Every Document

Keep a single folder — physical or digital — containing every record related to the collision:

• The police crash report.
• All medical visits, imaging, and bills.
• Photographs from the scene and of ongoing injuries.
• Wage-loss documentation from your employer.
• Any correspondence from the insurance carrier.

Step 7: Contact an Experienced Attorney

An experienced personal injury attorney protects your rights from the first phone call: preserving physical evidence, obtaining surveillance footage before it is overwritten, coordinating with your treating physicians, and dealing with adjusters on your behalf. At Cavaliere & Mangiaracina, the consultation is free and there is no fee unless we recover for you.

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Attorney Advertising.