The Massachusetts Accident Data Center website reveals an array of accidents that occur in our State every day: a 8 year old boy was injured while riding his bicycle in Worcester; a pedestrian was struck by a vehicle in Shrewsbury; and a two-car wreck in Paxton left four people seriously hurt. You can’t help but wonder what YOU would do, if you — or your little boy — had been injured. It’s an upsetting time, and it gets worse when you realize that you now have another challenge: finding a personal injury lawyer who will protect your rights and fight for just compensation. After all, it’s the only way you can be sure that you receive the care and compensation you need, whether it is immediate care for a broken bone or the expense of longer-term care, such as physical therapy or other rehabilitation therapy, to help you get back to where you were before the accident.
There are so many ways that injuries occur, and you certainly will require both medical and legal guidance in determining how to proceed in recovery. Our attorneys understand not only the stress and physical burdens you will endure, but also the financial challenges that lay ahead. Serious personal injury can change your life, and you need an experienced legal team by your side.
From a legal perspective here are some basic tips to help you get organized:
- Keep great records: Make sure you keep a copy of every scrap of paper you get, whether it is a business card that identifies a police officer or a witness, a receipt for a prescription medication, or a print out from the urgent care center showing the treatment that was rendered. You can always throw it out later, after your lawyer sees it.
- Take pictures whenever and wherever possible: If you have a smart phone with a built-in camera, take as many pictures of the scene of the incident as you can. Take pictures of injuries suffered by you and others. Take pictures of vehicles, of snowy sidewalks, of the walkway with the missing handrail. Again, you can always delete pictures that end up not being important.
- Follow doctors’ orders: For some people, it’s natural to minimize your injuries because you don’t want to look like a whiner. This is especially true, if you’re a parent who was in an accident that also involved your child; it’s natural not to want to scare the child. That said, if the ER doctor wants you to stay in bed and rest for 10 days, this is no time for you to ignore that advice. Non-compliance with medical advice can create all kinds of problems for you down the road when you realize that your injury was more serious than you understood at the time.
Regardless of how you were injured or the type of injury suffered, these guidelines will help you and your attorney obtain the just compensation you deserve for your injuries. If you have questions about a personal injury case, please contact our Worcester law office for a free case evaluation with an experienced personal injury attorney.
