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Traffic Accident Insurance Claims Article
By Dan Baldyga
As the accident victim you should check to see
if there were newspaper accounts reporting the accident. If
there were clip out the relevant articles and save them. The
area’s local newspapers should also be checked for the
possibility that they may have published a synopsis of the
weather on the day of the accident. Upon clipping out such
item's a notation should be made indicating the name of the
newspaper, plus the date and page, etc.
Review these write-up’s closely because
a photograph may be available via those articles. If this
is so, go to the newspaper office (or make a telephone call
to it) and order an 8x10 glossy print of the photo from that
article’s reporter or photographer. It’s even
possible you may discover that a newspaper (or an on-the-scene
TV reporter) has available a photo that had been taken but
wasn’t used - - these are usually available for a nominal
charge.
There are two other “by products”
for which photographs can additionally be useful to you in
your claims settlement undertaking when you and adjuster I.
M. Smart face off. One by-product is the possibility that,
upon closely studying the photo, you may discover a witness.
Or you might be able to pick out from the photos the registration
numbers of other vehicles in the impact area but weren’t
involved in the accident. From such a piece of information
you may be able to get the police, or the motor vehicle department,
to provide you with the names and addresses of the parties
to whom the registration number belongs. That, thus accomplished,
could present you with the possibility of locating a critical
witness to your case.
OBTAINING THE POLICE REPORT - IF ANY:
It’s always a good idea to call the police when there’s
an accident. It’s to your advantage to do so and to
have a police report on file. In most states the police are
required, by law, to be promptly notified whenever an accident
occurs, especially when there’s an injury or the damages
to one of the vehicles exceeds some fixed amount, say for
example, $250.00 or $300.00.
About a week or so after the police execute
the report it will usually be available to the public at the
police department. You may secure a copy of the report by
requesting one for a nominal charge. If the accident occurs
on a state highway, you apply for the report from that states
Highway Patrol office. If the accident occurred anywhere else,
you should apply for that report from the city, county, or
sheriff’s department that investigated the accident.
Upon obtaining a copy you can scan it for a
witness the police may have included. It’s possible
that the police may have taken some useful photographs. They’ll
usually be more than willing to sell you reprints.
You may discover - - especially in severe accident
violations involving, for example, drunkenness - - that there’s
in existence some special reports and/or highly detailed diagrams
of the accident. You can inquire with the investigating officers
who prepared the report (their names are almost always listed
somewhere on the reports) as to whether there was a professional
photographer they may observed at the scene, thereby providing
you with yet another source for potentially helpful photographs
or witnesses.
If you accomplish this preliminary work - -
when you sit down for your settlement talk with Adjuster Smart
(presenting him with what you’ve accumulated) he’s
going to understand he’s dealing with an individual
who knows what they’re doing. This will go a long way
towards convincing him not to attempt to con and/or take advantage
of you. And that’s money in the bank!
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DISCLAIMER:
The purpose of this article "MOTOR
VEHICLE ACCIDENT INSURANCE CLAIMS" is for all readers
to understand the motor vehicle accident claim process. Neither
Dan Baldyga, Scott Baker, I GOT HIT, LLC, and/or the Accident
Resource make any guarantee of any kind whatsoever, NOR do
they purport to engage in rendering any professional or legal
service; NOR to substitute for a lawyer, an insurance adjuster,
or claims consultant, or the like. Where such professional
help is desired it is THE INDIVIDUAL’S RESPONSIBILITY
to obtain said services.
Dan Baldyga’s third and latest book,
AUTO ACCIDENT PERSONAL INJURY INSURANCE CLAIM (How To Evaluate
And Settle Your Loss) can be found on the internet at http://www.caraccidentclaims.com
or http://www.autoaccidentclaims.com.
This book reveals “How To” handle your property
damage claim so you won’t be taken advantage of. It
also goes into detail regarding BASE (The Baldyga Auto Accident
Settlement Evaluation Formula). THE BASE FORMULA explains
how to determine the value of the “Pain and Suffering”
you endured - - because of your personal injury!
Copyright (c) 2004 By Daniel G. Baldyga.
All Rights Reserved.
Dan Baldyga - Author
dbpaw@comcast.net
AUTO ACCIDENT PERSONAL INJURY INSURANCE CLAIM
(How To Evaluate And Settle Your Loss)
http://www.autoaccidentclaims.com
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