What to Document After a Car Accident

Following a car accident, there will be many conversations, meetings and notes that need to be documented. If your personal injury case goes to trial, you may be asked to recall how you felt, or what someone said to you during a specific conversation. It may be helpful to keep an accident journal to document important notes following your Arizona vehicle accident.

Jonathan Negretti, a personal injury attorney and founder of Negretti & Associates, shares the top items that may be helpful to document in your car accident journal.

• Your version of how the accident happened.
• The pain you felt at the scene of the car accident.
• The names and contact information of all parties involved.
• The names and badge number of the responding officers.
• Following the accident, write down when you experience pain, make sure to include the date and specific details about what hurts.
• Keep detailed notes when having conversations with insurance company representatives — include dates and names.
• Document doctor and physical therapy visits — where you went, how many miles you drove, how long your appointment lasted, what the doctor said, how much work you missed for this appointment, etc. Keep a copy of each doctor’s business card in your accident journal.
• Document time away from work and lost wages as a result of the accident.
• If there are any bruising or broken bones, take pictures throughout the healing process.

If you hire the attorneys at Negretti & Associates for your personal injury case, we document all the necessary items to protect your case. However, we find it is helpful for our clients to also keep an accident journal to remind them to share information with the attorneys during their meetings. This helps the attorneys recoup every dollar you’ve lost due to the negligence of another party.