Accident clinics are designed to help car accident victims like you obtain the comprehensive medical care they need after being injured by the negligence of other drivers.
If you have injuries, the most important thing to do after a car accident is to seek medical attention. Unless you need to be transported to the emergency room immediately, you should stay at the scene to get the contact and insurance information of the other drivers involved. You also should get the contact information of any witnesses to the accident, who can help support your claim. If you have a phone with a camera, you should take photos of various parts of the accident scene.
The terms of your policy will determine how long you have to report a car accident to your insurance provider. You should make sure to be familiar with the terms so that you report the accident as required. Failing to report an accident as required by the terms of the policy likely will allow the insurer to deny coverage later, even if your claim is otherwise legitimate.
The State of Florida employs a no-fault approach when it comes to car accidents, which means that you will initially file your car accident claim with your own insurance provider under your personal injury protection (PIP) coverage (which will cover a specific percentage of your related medical expenses). It’s important to note, however, that in order to do so, you must have received medical attention within 14 days of the accident in question. This is an incredibly tight window, and when you factor in how disorienting being in a serious car accident can be, it makes missing the tight deadline that much more likely. The fact that some very serious injuries can hide in plain sight for hours or even days makes things more challenging. The bottom line is that if you are in a car accident involving significant impact, you should accept medical attention at the scene if it’s offered, and if it isn’t, you should seek the medical care you need as soon after the accident as possible.
If your injuries are serious enough to exceed your PIP coverage limit, the next likely step is filing your claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance provider. While PIP only provides coverage at a certain percentage of the overall costs you experience (and the policy limits are unlikely to meet your needs if your injuries are serious), you can seek compensation for your complete losses (or legal damages) when you file a claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance provider.
In the State of Florida, you can seek compensation for the percentage of fault that the other motorist is responsible for – even if you share fault in the matter. This means that if you are found to be 50 percent at fault for the accident that leaves you injured, you can still seek compensation for 50 percent of your total losses via the other driver’s insurance provider. Florida is one of the relatively few states that employs pure comparative fault, which means that – even if you are more to blame than the other driver – you still collect on the percentage of fault that he or she bears.
