On this page
- Check for Injuries and Immediate Danger
- Contact Law Enforcement
- Move to a Safer Location When Appropriate
- Exchange Information With the Other Driver
- Take Photos and Videos
- Look for Witnesses
- Write Down What You Remember
- Keep Important Accident Documents
- Be Careful About Guessing Who Was at Fault
- Why Does It Matter After an Accident?
- Frequently Asked Questions About What to Do After a Car Accident
Knowing a few basic steps ahead of time can make the situation easier to handle.
After a crash, the first priorities should be safety and getting appropriate help. Once the immediate situation is under control, gathering basic information and documenting the accident can also be important.
Every accident is different. A minor parking-lot collision is not handled exactly the same way as a serious highway crash. Still, several general steps can help protect important information after an accident.
Check for Injuries and Immediate Danger
Safety comes first.
After a collision, check yourself and others for apparent injuries if you can do so safely. If someone appears seriously injured or there is another emergency, call 911.
Be aware of dangers around the accident scene. Moving traffic, leaking fluids, damaged vehicles, fire, or debris can create additional risks.
Avoid putting yourself in danger just to inspect vehicle damage or take pictures.
If you are injured or unsure whether you can safely move, getting emergency assistance should take priority over collecting evidence.
Contact Law Enforcement
Depending on the circumstances, police may respond to the accident and investigate the scene.
An officer may speak with the drivers and witnesses, document information about the vehicles, record insurance information, note road or weather conditions, and prepare an accident report.
If law enforcement responds, cooperate and provide accurate information about what happened.
Avoid guessing about details you do not know.
For example, if you are unsure how fast another vehicle was traveling, it is better to say you do not know than to invent a number.
The goal should be to provide accurate information about what you actually observed.
Move to a Safer Location When Appropriate
A damaged vehicle sitting in an active travel lane can create another hazard.
If the accident is minor, the vehicles can be moved safely, and doing so is appropriate under the circumstances, getting out of active traffic may reduce the risk of another collision.
However, serious crashes can be different.
If someone is badly injured, the vehicle cannot be safely moved, or emergency conditions exist, follow instructions from law enforcement or emergency personnel.
Your personal safety should always come before preserving the exact position of a vehicle.
Exchange Information With the Other Driver
After an accident, obtain basic identifying and insurance information from the other driver when it is safe to do so.
Useful information may include:
- Driver's name
- Contact information
- Driver's license information
- Insurance company
- Insurance policy information
- Vehicle make and model
- License plate number
If a commercial vehicle is involved, additional identifying information may also be useful, such as the trucking company's name, truck number, trailer number, or other visible company information.
Try to record the information accurately instead of relying on memory later.
Take Photos and Videos
If you can safely do so, photographs and video can preserve details that may change after everyone leaves the scene.
Useful photographs may include:
- Damage to all vehicles
- Vehicle positions
- License plates
- Traffic signals
- Stop signs
- Lane markings
- Skid or tire marks
- Debris
- Road conditions
- Nearby construction
- Weather conditions
- The surrounding intersection or roadway
Taking both close-up and wider photographs can be helpful.
A close photograph might show vehicle damage, while a wider photograph can show where the vehicles were located in relation to lanes, signs, or an intersection.
Do not walk into traffic or another dangerous area just to get a better picture.
Look for Witnesses
People who saw the accident may have information that the drivers do not.
A witness might have seen a traffic signal, a vehicle changing lanes, the movement of traffic, or the moments leading up to the collision.
If someone witnessed the crash and is willing to provide information, try to get the person's name and contact information.
Witnesses can leave before police arrive, and finding them later may be difficult.
You do not need to conduct a detailed interview at the roadside. Simply preserving accurate contact information can be useful.
Write Down What You Remember
Memories can become less clear as time passes.
When you have an opportunity, write down what you remember about the accident.
You might record:
- Where you were traveling
- Your direction of travel
- What lane you were in
- What you saw before impact
- Traffic conditions
- Weather
- Anything unusual about the roadway
- What happened immediately afterward
Stick to what you actually remember.
Do not try to fill in missing details or make assumptions about what another driver was thinking or doing.
A simple factual account can be more useful than trying to reconstruct details you did not actually observe.
Keep Important Accident Documents
A car accident can generate many records after everyone leaves the scene.
Keep accident-related information together when possible.
This may include:
- Police or crash-report information
- Photographs and videos
- Witness contact information
- Insurance correspondence
- Vehicle repair estimates
- Towing documents
- Rental-car paperwork
- Medical bills and records related to the accident
- Work records if the accident affects your employment
Keeping these documents organized can make it easier to understand what happened and what expenses or losses followed the accident.
Be Careful About Guessing Who Was at Fault
People often want to know immediately who caused an accident.
But the answer may not always be obvious at the scene.
Vehicle positions after impact do not necessarily show exactly how the collision occurred. Drivers may remember events differently. Additional evidence may also exist that no one at the scene has seen yet.
That could include surveillance video, dashcam footage, witness statements, electronic vehicle information, or other records.
It is generally more useful to focus on accurately documenting what happened than trying to make immediate legal conclusions.
Why Does It Matter After an Accident?
Many types of accident evidence can disappear or become harder to obtain with time.
Vehicles are repaired. Debris is cleared. Witnesses leave. Surveillance systems may eventually overwrite video. People's memories can also become less detailed.
Information collected shortly after the collision may therefore help explain what happened later.
At Jacqueline A. Scott & Associates, when we investigate a Louisiana car accident, we can examine the available evidence rather than relying only on one person's account of the crash.
We may review photographs, witness information, crash reports, vehicle damage, available video, insurance information, medical documentation, and other evidence related to the collision.
If important evidence was not collected at the scene, that does not necessarily mean there is nothing else to investigate. We can look for additional sources of information and work to develop a clearer picture of what happened.
Frequently Asked Questions About What to Do After a Car Accident
Should I call the police after a car accident?
Police involvement can create an official record of the accident and may be required depending on the circumstances. Serious crashes, injuries, dangerous roadway conditions, or disputes about what happened are especially important situations for contacting law enforcement.
What information should I get from the other driver?
Try to obtain the driver's name, contact information, driver's license information, insurance information, vehicle information, and license plate number when it is safe to do so.
Should I take pictures after an accident?
If you can safely take photographs, they may help preserve information about vehicle damage, the roadway, traffic controls, vehicle positions, and other conditions at the scene.
What if I forgot to take pictures or get witness information?
That does not necessarily mean useful evidence is unavailable. Police records, nearby cameras, vehicle damage, insurance documents, electronic information, and other evidence may still help investigators understand what happened.
How can we investigate a car accident?
At Jacqueline A. Scott & Associates, we can review the available evidence surrounding the collision and look for additional information that may help explain what happened. Depending on the accident, that may include photographs, crash reports, witness statements, video, vehicle information, insurance records, and other relevant evidence.
This article is general information about Louisiana law and is not legal advice. Laws and deadlines can change, and every case depends on its own facts. Past results do not guarantee or predict future outcomes. Reading this page or contacting the firm does not by itself create an attorney-client relationship.
