Your response immediately after an accident may prove crucial in preserving the evidence essential to winning a claim. If possible, get the following information. If you are conscious, but cannot do it yourself, then ask someone present to gather the information for you.
Name, address, and telephone number of the other driver(s).
Drivers license number(s) and insurance information of the other driver(s).
Make, model and year of the other vehicles(s) and check the vehicle registration. Take down the vehicle owner's name and address, if it is a person or corporation or entity different from the driver. If it is a company vehicle, write down the name and address of the company. If it is a leased or rented vehicle, write down the name, address and telephone number of the rental company.
Give the other driver(s) your name, address, driver's license number and insurance information.
Look around immediately and identify any and all possible witnesses to the accident. Ask for their names, addresses, telephone numbers (both home and work), and where they work. If they do not want to get involved, take down their car license plate number and state.
Listen carefully to what the other driver(s) say about the events leading up to the accident and write it down.
Call the police, or have someone else call the police immediately. The police will generally interview all drivers and take witness statements from all witnesses still present. The police may also collect vital physical evidence and make important skid or debris measurements useful in "reconstructing" the point of impact and vehicle speeds upon which the auto driver's liability will often turn.
Ask the police officer to find out where the other driver was going. If the driver was on an errand for his or her employer, "in the course and scope of his or her employment," you may find you have another good "potential defendant."
Defective road claims
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Some motorcycle accidents are not caused by motorists but by a road defect. These defects could be the result of faulty road design, disrepair, inadequate maintenance, or failure to remove a road hazard.
A claim against a public entity for defective road repair or inadequate design is often subject to complex filing requirements. In addition, the timeline for filing these claims is much shorter than those allowed for the pursuit of other legal actions.
Often, an attorney will have to work hard to establish that the responsible party either knew of the road defect or reasonably should have known about the defect. These are known as the doctrines of "Notice" and "Constructive Notice". Contact Cochran, Foley & Associates if you feel that there may be a road defect claim.
